The Dare
by PuckleberryFinn123
Summary: For Puck, he had his heart broken, he fell in love, lost old friends, and made new ones all because of a dare.
1. Ah the joys of peer pressure

**A/N: First chapter. The basis for the whole story. Let me know what you think. I'd love it if you R&R:D **

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A dare. One little dare that pretty much changed everything for him. He'd always been _that _kid; the jock, bad boy, the guy who never fell in love, but always seemed to break tons of hearts. But this year was a little different. Since Finn stepped down as quarterback of the team to devote his time to Glee, it was clear who would replace him. Never in a million years would Puck ever think of being in Glee club, let alone quit football for it. It was, as Puck called it, "homoexplosion." Sure, there were some hot girls in Glee (including Puck's current girlfriend, Santana) but that was not enough to make him join.

Thursday after school Puck ran to the locker-room; gear in hand, to get ready for practice. As he was opening Finn's old locker, which was now his, he could feel eyes on him. When it got too intense for him to take any longer, he spoke.

"May I help you with something?" he said snarkily.

"Naw man, but we were just thinking about how hilarious it would be if you joined Glee," said Dijon, the linebacker of the Titans, McKinley High's football team.

"And why would I do that?" said Puck questioningly, "Those are the losers I usually throw slushies at."

"Yeah but that club would go downhill if you joined. I mean, we all know you probably suck at singing, but it'd give us a good laugh," Dijon continued.

Actually I'm a pretty good singer, thought Puck, but he'd never tell his teammates that. Music had always been an important part of his life from a very young age. After his deadbeat dad walked out on his family, which consisted of his mother and unborn sister Stacy, when he was 12 he started to rebel. He'd sneak out of the house to join his friends for a beer in the alley, and he'd talk back to his mother; much to his mom's dismay. Music was the one thing that was always there for him. Even on his worst days, throwing a football around wouldn't calm him, but strumming on his guitar would. He could sit there for hours playing his favorite song, "Sweet Caroline."

"Well look," Puck returned to the conversation, "you guys said it yourself, glee's gay. Why would you want me to join, so you can throw ice cold slushies in my face like you do to Finn?"

"You gave him hell," he continued, "for joining Glee, and now you want me to do the same?"

"C'mon dude, just do it. It'd be hilarious; tough guy Puck prancing around on stage? It'd be a good laugh for us all."

Ah the joys of peer pressure, Puck thought sarcastically.

"Fine fine, but what do I get out of it?" he asked his teammates.

"Uh, hot chicks! Think about it, girls are suckers for the sensitive guy," Matt said putting air quotes around the words sensitive guy.

After a few minutes of consideration, Puck finally agreed.

"Alright fine, I'll do it, but one slushie to the face from any of you and I'm done." Seriously, that was his biggest worry? A slushie to the face? His worry was more that he'd actually end up enjoying it. After a round of high fives from his teammates, he sat on the bench and ran his fingers through his hair, or should I say Mohawk.


	2. She was different and he liked it

**A/N: I do not own anything Glee; no characters, nothing, sadly. R&R and let me know what you think. **

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After a long night of tossing and turning, Puck walked into school early and knocked on the door of Rm. 118; the choir room.

"Come on in," said a voice from inside.

When Puck entered the room, he saw Mr. Schuster writing on the whiteboard. He looked around and saw instruments of all types; from guitars to tubas. Thankfully, no one else was there. Mr. Schuster shot a quick glance to see who had come in the room.

"What do you want, Noah? I'm very busy," he said running around the room.

"I want to audition for Glee," Puck said hesitantly.

Mr. Schuster stopped what he was doing to look at Puck.

"You can't be serious Puckerman. What, did your friends on the football team put you up to this?"

"No." Yes.

"Well okay, show me what you got." Mr. Schuster pulled out a chair and sat down.

Puck nervously grabbed his guitar and started to sing:

"Without you, I'm seeing myself so differently. I didn't wanna believe it then, but it all worked out in the end. When I watched you walk away, I never though I'd say I'm fine, without you." Puck took a deep breath after finishing his song and prepared for the criticism. Before he opened his eyes, he heard a clap that sounded like it came from far away. He opened his eyes to find none other than Rachel Berry sitting in the far corner of the choir room with sheet music in her hand. Oh crap, she must have been practicing here. How did I not see her?

"Noah, that was very good! I'm impressed," said Rachel.

"Yeah, thanks."

"Mr. Schuster, I have to leave, but I shall return at 3:30 for rehearsals," Rachel said before getting up off the floor and leaving the room.

"Did you write that?" Mr. Schuster turned his attention back to Puck.

"Yeah, I know it's not good, but if you give me a chance, I'll…"

"No, it was really good. You're actually really talented."

"Really? Thanks." Puck was pleasantly surprised. He barely ever heard compliments, but when he did it was either about his football skills or his bullying tactics, so it was nice that he was being praised for something he actually enjoyed doing.

"Here's what I'm gonna do. I'll make you a deal."

"What's the deal?" Puck asked unsurely.

"If you keep your grades up, you can be in Glee."

"But Mr. Schuster, I'm not good at school. I'll never be able to keep my grades up," he said shyly.

"Tell you what, how about I have someone tutor you?"

Puck stood silently for a minute.

"Okay, deal."

"Come back after school for your first tutoring session."

So Puck went about his day as he normally did; sleeping in math class, throwing a slushie at Rachel Berry, going to football practice, and then he went to the choir room. When he walked in, he saw Mr. Schuster sitting at a desk with a brunette student. She looked familiar, but Puck couldn't quite put his finger on it. Once she turned around, he knew exactly who it was.

"Noah? Mr. Schuster, you didn't tell me that I would be tutoring Noah Puckerman," said the brunette.

"And you didn't tell me, I'd be getting tutored by Rachel Berry." Puck said the girl's name as if he were in disgust.

"I thought this might not go well but look, Rachel is an A+ student. You want to be in Glee, right?"

A lot actually, he thought.

"Let's just get this over with," Puck griped.

"I couldn't agree more," said Rachel.

"So once you divide x by 2, you carry the one and get…"

"This is stupid!" Puck slammed his book shut and rested his head in his hands.

"Okay, let's try Spanish," said a calm Rachel.

"Let's just face it, I'll never get this stuff. I'm stupid and you know it," Puck said annoyed.

"You have potential Noah. You just have to… try a different approach."

"You think I have potential?" he asked, surprised.

"Oh yeah, definitely," she said obviously distracted.

Puck smiled. No one ever really told him he had potential. Most of them just said he'd end up in jail, or with a kid he didn't want, he liked that Rachel encouraged him.

"You're good at football right?" she asked, breaking into his train of thought.

Puck shook his head yes.

"Okay so, let's say the away team has x number of points. The Titans have 20 points. If the total number of points for both teams is 40, how many points does the away team have?" Rachel said, still distracted.

Before he answered the question, he noticed Rachel staring into the hallway. When he turned around, he saw Finn and Quinn standing by the doorway, with their backs turned to Rachel and Puck. A wave of jealousy came over Puck. It's not that he liked Rachel Berry, they weren't even friends, it was just supposed to be his time, his tutoring session with her.

"Could you please focus on the lesson?" Puck said bitterly.

"Um, sorry, so what's the answer?" she said turning her attention back to Puck. "I thought I would be the one having a hard time getting you to concentrate," she joked.

"20?" he said uncertainly.

"Exactly, see, you can do it. All you need is to break it down into terms you understand," Rachel smiled.

Puck smiled back at her.

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"Thank you for helping me today," Puck said to Rachel as he walked her home.

"Not a problem, Noah. We need all the members we can get for Glee. I'm just being a team player."

"You know you can call me Puck. Everyone does."

"I don't want to be like everyone else. Plus, Noah _is _your name." Rachel ignored his wish and continued walking. This took Puck by surprise. Nobody called him Noah except his mom and a few teachers. Even his girlfriend called him Puck. Rachel was different and he liked it, not enough to be her friend though. She was pretty too, if you could get past the annoying personality.

"So I'll see you after school for Glee practice tomorrow?" Rachel said stopping by her door.

"Okay, bye." As Puck turned around to leave, he bumped into one of his football teammates.

"What are you doing at Rachel Berry's house?" spoke Dijon.

"Mr. Schuster wants her to help me prepare for Glee." He wasn't going to tell them the deal he had with Mr. Schu. "I wouldn't have to prepare if it wasn't for you guys, remember that." And with that Puck walked away.


	3. It's just life, it sucks

**A/N: Again, I don't own anything Glee. Thanks for the comments I've been getting on "The Dare." Let me know what you think. I'd love to hear what you want me to incorporate, so when I do my next FF, I will know;D**

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"Okay guys, we have a new member. I'm sure most of you know who he is anyway. This is Puck." When Mr. Schuster said that name, every mouth in the room dropped, except of course, Rachel's.

"Did Dijon or one of the other guy's dare you to join?" asked Finn. He knew Puck better than this.

"Why does everyone think that?"

"Because I know you too well, something's up here," said Finn.

"Can't everyone just be happy that you have another teammate?" They made him feel guilty. So he took a dare, it's not like he committed a federal crime. Maybe it wasn't everybody else that was making him feel this way, maybe it was his own conscious.

"Mhm," they all said skeptically.

"Well I for one am ecstatic to have you join Glee. Welcome aboard Noah," Rachel said, defending him.

Was she trying to embarrass him? He didn't want anyone to know that they were sort of becoming friends. He just nodded his head and walked to the chair furthest away from Rachel.

"Today we're gonna do something different," spoke Mr. Schu," instead of working in our normal duets, we'll be switching it up a bit. Sectionals is about diversifying yourselves, so here's what we're going to do. When I call your name, you will come up here and pick a number from the bowl. Girls pick from the pink bowl and boys pick from the blue. Once you get your number, stand in the corner until a person from the opposite sex picks the same number. That person will be your partner." Mr. Schuster noticed that Brittany had her hand raised. "And no, you cannot exchange partners, Brittany." She put her hand down.

"Alright, Quinn, come and pick a number." She walked over to the pink bowl and fished around in it. She pulled out a folded piece of white paper. She opened it to reveal the number 1. She stood in the corner and waited until someone else pulled the same number.

Next up was Tina, followed by Mercedes, Brittany, Rachel, and last, Santana.

Then it was the boys' turn. This process went on until every number was pulled. Once all the numbers were pulled the pairs were as followed: Tina & Matt, Santana & Artie, Brittany & Finn, Mike & Mercedes, Quinn & Kurt, and Rachel & Puck.

How is it possible that out of every single person in this class that I had to pull the number 6? The exact same number as Rachel. Somebody's trying to test my patience, thought puck.

"I have a few rules on these papers here. It tells you where you will be practicing with your respective partners, what I want from each of your groups, and a few fun activities that I want you guys to try to get to know your partner. This should be a really interesting project since every single one of your pairs aren't who you normally hang out with. Okay, come and get your papers. Oh, and the project will be due in 2 weeks. Work hard guys," said Mr. Schu handing out the papers with all the guidelines.

"I'm very excited to get the opportunity to work with you Noah. See you in the choir room at 4:00? Come prepared with some song selections," said Rachel on her way out the door.

Before he even had a chance to say anything, she was gone. I can't believe I not only have to get tutored by her, but I have to spend more time with her on this stupid project. Puck groaned as he made his way to his locker. Santana walked up to him and before he could even figure out what was going on, she slapped him. It wasn't a soft slap either; it was the kind of slap that left a mark.

"We're over," she said before stalking away.

"Wait, what the hell was that for?" Puck asked confused.

"Like you don't know," she stopped walking to look at him, "you cheated on me."

"With who?"

"Don't be stupid Puck! I bet you thought that I'm just this easy girl you could toy with. Well guess what? I have feelings too y'know." Santana stood in the middle of the crowded hallway with her arms folded across her chest.

"Who are you talking about san?" Puck grabbed her arm, but not before she pulled away.

"Don't call me that! Stop acting like you're so confused by what I'm talking about. I know you had sex with April Rhodes when she was here. I wouldn't be surprised if you were the one that got Quinn pregnant either." She mumbled the last sentence under her breath, but Puck still heard.

"Who told you that?" Puck said defensively.

"Obviously, not you!" And with a flick of her hair, Santana was gone.

He actually meant about Quinn being pregnant.

At 3:35, Puck decided to go to the choir room. He figured he could use some time to himself before Rachel showed up. Unfortunately for him, when he got there, Rachel was already sitting at the piano, playing with the keys.

"Ah Noah, you're early! To what do I owe this occasion," said Rachel, standing up from where she was sitting at the piano.

"I didn't expect you to be here," he said crossly.

"Well, you know my motto: Always be early. I thought you would have been late, but you pleasantly surprised me," she said trying to be friendly.

"Yeah, well I thought I'd have a better partner, one that wasn't as annoying as you, but I guess I didn't have a choice in that."

Rachel had some tears fogging up her eyes, but she quickly wiped them away. Puck noticed and he actually felt a twinge of guilt.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it's just… I've got a lot on my mind right now and I'm not really in the mood to practice," he said sliding down against the wall.

"Do you want to talk about it?" asked Rachel walking over to join him on the cold tile floor.

"Not really," he said coldly.

"I've been told that I'm a very good listener. If you're worried about me judging you, you don't have to worry about that. I'll just listen," said Rachel affectionately.

How could anyone say no to her? She made him feel sort of comfortable, not that he'd ever admit that to her.

"I just have a lot going on, you wouldn't understand."

"Try me," she said sweetly.

"It's just life. It sucks," he said honestly.

"Don't I know it, hey, at least you don't have to start everyday with a slushie facial." She tried to crack a joke.

"I'm sorry," he said sincerely.

"It's okay," she said.

After a minute of hesitation, she spoke again.

"So, do you want to get out of here?"

"Sure."


	4. Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore

**A/N: Again, I do not own anything Glee. I don't own the song either. The lyrics are from "Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore by REO Speedwagon." I think this was my favorite chapter to write so far(:**

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"Where are we going exactly?" asked Puck as he was getting pulled through the parking lot.

"Just a place, oh c'mon, would you rather still be sitting in the choir room, or do something fun?"

Rachel Berry, fun? He didn't think that was possible.

"We're not gonna go sing show tunes, are we?" he said with objection.

"Just get in," said Rachel, holding the passenger's door to her pink Volkswagen open for Puck to get in.

"Uh, I'm not getting in that." His eyes suddenly grew wide.

"Well what other options do we have?" Rachel said matter-of-factly.

He looked around to make sure 1. That no one saw him with Rachel and 2. That no one saw him getting into a pink Volkswagen with Rachel.

"So, tell me where we're going?" he asked again.

"Just buckle up and be quiet," she demanded.

That was the first time he'd ever seen her be forceful. He sort of liked that side of her.

"Let's turn some music on," said Rachel turning the knob on her dashboard.

Puck expected to hear "Don't Rain on my parade" by Barbra Streisand or "Defying Gravity," something show-tuney. But to his surprise, the sound of Neil Diamond's voice cascaded through the speakers.

_Sweet Caroline, good times never seemed so good. I've been inclined, ba ba ba, to believe it never would. _

"You like that song?" Puck asked confused. He never imagined Rachel listening to Neil Diamond.

"It's my favorite! Neil Diamond is a personal favorite of mine, but I might just be subjective since he's Jewish," said Rachel rambling on in her Rachel Berry way.

Rachel's Jewish? He really didn't know anything about her.

"Since we have some time, let's just do the activities that Mr. Schu has on these papers," Rachel suggested.

"Alright," he uttered. There was no use arguing with Rachel Berry. She usually got what she wanted.

"Number 1, who is your favorite musician?" Rachel asked Puck.

"Hmm, I'd have to say Neil Diamond."

"Nice choice. Number 2, what is it that made you want to join Glee?"

"Um, why don't you answer first?" Crap, this is terrible. If she finds out about the dare, he could end up being kicked out of Glee and she'd hate him. Normally he could care less what Rachel Berry thought, but hanging out with her these past few days had made him care.

"I love music. I love singing, I love performing. I love having the spotlight on me."

Puck rolled his eyes.

"But not for the reason people think. Everyone thinks that I'm this attention seeker who only cares about herself, but I love Glee because it makes me feel good about myself. It's the only time when I feel confident and beautiful and I'm good at it. Sometimes I feel like it's the _only_ thing I'm good at." Puck could tell she was being honest and real with him. He liked that she trusted him so much. Why couldn't he just do the same and tell her the truth?

"So enough about me, what was your reason for joining Glee?" Rachel said stopping the car.

"It started as a dare." He saw Rachel glare at him out of the corner of his eye. "But then I started to love it. I've always loved music; it was the only thing that helped me get through my dad walking out on us. It would help me get through the times when I just wanted to punch a wall or yell at my dad. It just helped me express my emotions." Sitting there with Rachel, those words just came naturally to him. He loved not hiding his emotions, he loved being able to say whatever he wanted.

"I knew your intentions weren't good when you started out. I wanted to believe you were different Noah, but I didn't think it was possible."

Puck looked disappointed. He was used to hurting people, disappointing them, but disappointing Rachel sent a surge of guilt through him. He felt disgusted with himself.

Why do I have these feelings? I don't want them, I _can't _want them, but I can't fight them either.

"Then as I'm sitting here with you, I'm thinking that I might be right. There's more to you than I thought. I thought you were this bully that just went around taking out his anger on the world, particularly in the form of throwing slushies in my face, but there's just so much I really don't know about you. I misjudged you, and I was wrong." Rachel Berry admitting she was wrong? Another first.

"I'm sorry," Puck said turning to face her, "I really am. I never meant to humiliate you or hurt you or make you feel less than you are, you deserve better than that. And its okay, I misjudged you too. I thought you were some annoying, self-proclaimed diva who always whined when she didn't get her way. I thought you talked way too much, but I actually like it when you ramble. It's sort of a nervous habit, isn't it?"

"I-I suppose," she said sounding like Tina.

"You're special Rachel, and I'm sorry if I've ever made you feel like anything less." They both sat there staring at each other. Puck didn't know what to do. He certainly couldn't kiss her, but he certainly couldn't look away either.

"Follow me," Rachel said, breaking the silence. She got out of the car and they walked into a bowling alley.

"Rachel Berry bowls?" said Puck sarcastically.

"And she's pretty darn good at it too," Rachel teased, "probably better at it than you."

"Oh yeah, bring it!"

Rachel grabbed a pink ball and threw it. It knocked down all ten pins.

"Not bad Berry. So how did you find out about this place?" he asked grabbing his red ball off the ball return.

"Finn took me here once," Rachel said casually.

Finn, Finn, it's always about Finn. He sounded like a jealous boyfriend. How could he sound like a jealous boyfriend when he didn't even want to be friends with her? It's not that he didn't want to be friends with her; it's that he couldn't be. The high school food chain wouldn't allow it.

"Oh, he did?" he asked pretending not to care.

"Yeah, he was trying to get me to come back to Glee because he needed a scholarship."

"When was this?"

"What's with the interrogation, Noah?" Rachel laughed, "Just bowl."

She was right. He sounded like a dad questioning his daughter. It was none of his business who she hung out with.

As he was sitting down, he heard music coming from somewhere.

"What's that?" he asked.

"There's a karaoke bar here." Just then, her eyes twinkled. She had an idea. Normally, Puck hated that, but he actually didn't mind.

"Let's go!" she said yet again pulling him towards the bar.

"I don't know if this is such a great idea. I mean, are you sure you want to ruin your reputation as the star by singing with someone like me," he joked.

"This is a chance for you to help your reputation. Singing with a star like me might make you better," she joked back.

The man and woman who were singing finished their song and got off stage. Puck and Rachel walked up and turned on the music.

Rachel started out,

_I can't fight this feeling any longer. And yet I'm still afraid to let it flow. What started out as friendship has grown stronger. I only wish I had the strength to let it show. _

When she sang, it touched something in Puck. Chills ran down his spine and goose bumps formed all over his arms. He couldn't help but stare at her. She really was beautiful. Puck hardly ever used that word to describe anyone; he usually called girls 'hot.' But he couldn't objectify Rachel in that way. She was beautiful, gorgeous, alluring. He could have continued thinking about her, but it was his turn to sing.

_I tell myself that I can't hold out forever. I said there is no reason for my fear. Cause I feel so secure when we're together. You give my life direction, you make everything so clear. _

It was crazy how accurate this song described his feelings. It was crazy how accurate this song described _her _feelings. He moved closer to her and held out his hand. She grabbed it and they sang together.

_And even as I wander, I'm keeping you in sight. You're a candle in the window, on a cold, dark winter's night. And I'm getting closer than I ever thought I might. _

_And I can't fight this feeling anymore. I've forgotten what I started fighting for. It's time to bring this ship into the shore, and throw away the oars, forever. _

He spun her around and into his arms.

_Cause I can't fight this feeling anymore. I've forgotten what I started fighting for. And if I have to crawl upon the floor, come crashing through your door, baby I can't fight this feeling anymore. _

He let her go and she walked in a circle around him as he continued to sing his lines.

_My life has been such a whirlwind since I saw you. I've been running round in circles in my mind. And it always seems that I'm following you, girl, cause you take me to the places, that alone I'd never find. _

As she walked closer to him, he felt a rush. It was as if the breath was knocked out of him. It was something he'd never experienced before and he had to admit that he liked it.

_And even as I wander, I'm keeping you in sight. You're a candle in the wind, on a cold, dark winter's night. And I'm getting closer than I ever thought I might. And I can't fight this feeling anymore. I've forgotten what I started fighting for. It's time to bring this ship into the shore, and throw away the oars, forever. _

As they finished out the ending of the song, they stared into each other's eyes. The crowd was eating it up. They loved the performance. They were standing and cheering and although half of them were probably drunk, it was hard to deny the chemistry of their performance.

_Cause I can't fight this feeling anymore. I've forgotten what I started fighting for. And if I have to crawl upon the floor, come crashing through your door, baby, I can't fight this feeling anymore. _

They stood there, staring at each other. For the first time in his life, he wanted to kiss Rachel Berry. He wanted her to be in his arms, and he wanted her to be his. For the first time in a long time, she had feelings of a romantic nature for someone besides Finn. Possibly, these feelings might be even stronger.


	5. You're always sorry

They walked off the stage feeling excited. They were both out of breath, but that most likely wasn't from the performance. He grabbed her and pulled her into a hug.

"You were great, Noah! I can't believe how talented you are!"

"Me? You were fantastic! They were obviously cheering for you."

"They were cheering for both of us." Rachel bumped him with her shoulder. They both laughed and walked out with big smiles on their faces.

"Let me drive this time," he said, waiting for Rachel to hand him the keys.

"Fine, but my radio, my song choice," Rachel laughed.

He opened the car door for her and then got in on the other side. If he didn't know any better, this could almost be considered a date.

"So have you thought of any songs for our project?" Rachel asked out of the blue.

"Actually I have. I have a few song choices that I want you to check out." He handed her a folded piece of paper from his pocket.

As she read the writing on the paper, her face was overcome with grief. He thought she'd like the songs he selected, but maybe he was wrong.

"What, are they too cheesy, not show-tuney enough?" he tried to joke. But suddenly she wasn't in the joking mood. "Rachel, what's wrong? We don't have to choose those songs, it was just…"

"These aren't songs. It's a note," she said handing the paper back to him.

He opened the paper and read the note. It was a note between him and Dijon

_D: So how's things with Santana going? _

_P: She broke up with me, something about my credit score; chicks. _

_D: Tell me about it. I asked Brittany out and she turned me down. Who would've thought she'd have enough brains to do that? _

_P: ha, right? _

_D: I bet that Rachel Berry chick wouldn't say no. _

_P: To who? _

_D: To anyone. She's probably desperate enough that she'd even date u. _

_P: Naw, she likes Finn. _

_D: Yeah, but she's pretty desperate for a boyfriend. Ask her out, I bet you could get into her pants in the first five minutes. ;) _

_P: ha, probably. _

Damn! That note was from weeks ago. It was before he really knew Rachel Berry. It was before he liked her, wanted to be her friend. There was no way he'd be able to explain that to her though.

"Rachel, I-I-I'm sorry." Those seemed to be his favorite words, especially to her.

"You're always sorry! I could get past you throwing slushies in my face and even you telling people how annoying you think I am, but I am not desperate. I'm not some whore who's desperate enough for a boyfriend that I'd sleep with the first guy who asked me. I do have dignity and respect for myself you know!" She turned so that her back was facing him and she was facing the window.

"Rachel, please. I know it was wrong, I…" he touched the top of her hand, but she yanked it away. As he was staring at her, he heard her scream his name.

"Noah!" She shrieked in fear.

He turned to face the road to find a huge black van colliding head first into their tiny pink Rachel Berry Volkswagen.


	6. I've noticed the way he looks at you

Puck woke up to the sound of a beeping heart monitor. He opened his eyes and noticed IV's attached to his right arm. He looked around and saw white walls surrounding him. He was pretty sure he was in a hospital, although he couldn't remember how he'd gotten there. When he turned to his left, he saw his mom and Stacy standing there. His mom looked worn out and Stacy looked like she'd been crying.

"What's going on?" he asked with a hoarse voice. He tried to sit up, but a wave of dizziness came over him. He quickly lay back down.

"You're at St. Rita's Medical Center, Noah," his mother said getting off of her chair.

"How did I get here?"

"You and that Rachel Berry girl got into a major car crash."

Rachel. Now he remembered.

"Where is she? Is Rachel okay?" he said yanking the covers off of himself and getting up.

"Sit down, Noah," his mother demanded, "she's doing okay. She suffered a minor concussion, she dislocated her left shoulder, fractured some ribs, and she has some lacerations and bruises on her body, but her fathers said she should be okay."

"I have to go see her!"

"Not right now. She's still not conscious. Give her a few hours to spend with her family," his mother advised.

Puck sat back down and put his hands over his face. _I can't believe I let this happen. What if Rachel would have… died? Not only would I have felt extremely guilty, but I, I would have missed her, a lot. _

"I can't believe you'd do this Noah! How could you have let this happen? What if the girl would have died? What if **you **would have died? I'm disappointed in you." Kathleen took Stacy and they left the room.

"I am too," he said once she was gone.

Instead of following his mother's orders, Puck decided to go see Rachel. He couldn't not know if she forgave him, or if she even wanted to talk to him ever again. He searched the 10th floor of the hospital up and down until he found Rachel's room. When he got there, he saw that her parents had stepped out and Finn was sitting by her bedside. Rachel was awake and laughing with Finn. _He never goes away, does he? This was Puck's mistake. Puck should be the one sitting there, begging Rachel for forgiveness, and instead, Finn's sitting there laughing with her._

He waited outside the room for a few minutes before Finn came out. When Finn saw him, he said nothing. Instead he just gave him the type of look that Quinn was known for. He didn't have to make Puck feel bad, he already did. He wanted to go in her room, but he felt like his feet were frozen to the ground. _What if she doesn't forgive me? As much as I hate to admit it, I __**need**__ Rachel. _When he finally got the courage to walk inside, Rachel turned her back to him and closed her eyes.

"Rachel, I'm..." he couldn't finish his sentence. He couldn't say sorry again, he was always saying sorry but he always continued to find some way to hurt her.

"Sorry?" she guessed.

"Yeah, I also came to apologize. I wouldn't know what to do if you had…" he couldn't say the word he was thinking. He couldn't even think about Rachel not being there.

"Do you feel bad?" she asked.

"Yes, terrible," he admitted.

"Good."

Figuring he already caused enough trouble, he left her alone. He returned to his room to find his mother and sister waiting for him.

"Get your things together; the doctor said its fine for you to leave."

Puck gathered what little belongings he had with him and left. He was the one that got them into this mess and he was leaving the hospital before Rachel? _God, I hate myself. I should have just let her drive. _

Back in Rachel's room, Kurt had come to visit her. It was about as surprising to her as it was to him.

"Kurt, what are you doing here?" she asked suspiciously.

"As much as I have said I don't like you, you are my teammate, and I do think it's a shame what happened to you," he said sincerely.

"Well, thanks for coming," she said gratefully.

"Are you gonna be able to perform at Sectionals?" he asked worriedly.

"Why, scared you'll lose without me?" He thought she was being serious, but then he saw a smirk form at the corners of her mouth.

"So, did, Puck come to visit you?" he asked not trying to make the situation awkward for her.

"Uh, yeah he did. He came to apologize. His mom probably made him anyway, not like he actually cares what happens to me," she said drifting off.

"Don't be so hard on him," Kurt said standing at the doorway, "we all know Puck has lots of issues and he's a bully and he…" Kurt was rambling on until Rachel interrupted him.

"Kurt, what's your point?"

"Sorry. But look Rachel, I know you can't see it, but Puck actually cares about you. I've noticed the way he talks to you; it's not like with everybody else. He gives you his full attention. I see the way he looks at you too. Everyone's starting to notice, so just do yourself a favor, and don't let him feel guilty for this. He wasn't the one driving drunk. You both just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time." Once Kurt said his peace, he left Rachel to ponder his words.


	7. It's always about Finn

_Maybe it wasn't Noah's fault. After all, he did apologize. She could tell he felt bad about it, but why should she forgive him? If he hadn't written that note about her, they wouldn't have been in this mess in the first place. _

As soon as Puck got home, he bee lined straight to his room. He slammed his door, lay down on his bed, and looked up at the ceiling. He had a lot of thinking to do. _What are these feelings I'm having? I hate feelings; they're so damn unpredictable. It's why I never care, because the second I start caring about someone, is the second they leave. Why do I care so much about Rachel though? Even when I try __**not **__to think about her, or care about her, it only makes these feelings stronger. I'm thinking about her constantly, I miss her when I'm away from her and I'm happy when I'm with her. I definitely don't love her, God no, but is it possible that I have a crush on Rachel Berry? No, that's not possible. _

His thinking was interrupted when he heard a knock on the door.

"Noah, it's time for dinner," said Kathleen from outside the door.

"I'm not hungry."

"You're always hungry. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

A few minutes later he heard another voice outside the door. This time it was his sister's.

"Puck, c'mon, open the door."

"Go away Stacy!" he bellowed.

"Noah, please open the door," said another voice; a different voice. He knew this voice; he'd know it anywhere. He walked over to the door. Before he opened the door, he fixed himself up.

"Rachel, come in. Goodbye Stacy," he whispered before giving his little sister a soft shove out the door.

"Here, sit down," he said motioning towards his bed.

"It's okay, I won't be here long," she said leaning on her crutch. _Even looking like a wreck, Rachel still managed to look stunning considered Puck. _"I wanted to let you know that I forgive you." When Rachel said that, Puck looked up at her.

"I don't expect you too. I don't know why you would. Every time I give you reason to believe I'll change, I end up doing something to hurt you; disappoint you," he said candidly.

"Please don't be so hard on yourself," she said inching closer to him.

"Why not, look at you! You're like this because I did something stupid. I'm always doing something stupid."

"I'm fine," she said holding back a whimper of pain.

"Rachel, please don't hide your pain to spare my feelings. Yell at me, punch me, I deserve it."

"I'm not going to yell at you Noah, and I'm definitely not going to punch you. I don't believe violence will resolve anything here." She's back, he thought. She was finally starting to act like the Rachel Berry he knew and liked. He took another look at her and he lost it. He started to cry. He wasn't sure why, but he was just stricken with grief and couldn't contain it any longer. Rachel wasn't sure what was going on, but she did the one thing Rachel could do best; she sat on the bed and held him tight. They sat there for a while in each others arms.

"Sorry," Puck said wiping his tears, "you didn't come here to see my cry like a baby. I don't know what came over me.

"It's alright," she said letting go of him, "you always bottle up your emotions and that's not good. I just want to see you open up and trust somebody."

"I trust you," he said holding her bruised hand.

"I hope you do. You really are special Puck, I hope you know that," she said lovingly.

"You called me Puck?" he said surprised.

"I guess I did," she smiled. A few minutes later, the mood changed. The smile was gone off of her face, she snatched her hand out of his and it got weird.

"I have to go," she said.

"Wait!"

"What are we doing, Puck? You don't like me and I'm not supposed to like you. You're a jock, I'm in Glee club. We're not even friends, so let's stop pretending to be."

"Rachel," he pulled her back onto the bed, "I know it may be hard to believe, but I want to be your friend. I care about you, even thought it doesn't always seem like it, I do. I've tried pretending not to care, and pretending not to want to be around you, but the truth is that I can't. I need you around."

"So it's Finn?" he asked; hurt. _Face it, you like Rachel Berry, you're jealous of Finn. _"It's always about Finn. It's not fair."

"What are you talking about?" Rachel asked; stumped.

"You have feelings for Finn. Everyone knows that you're in love with him. That's why you won't hang out with me anymore," he said, thinking he knew the answer.

"No, that's not why. And I never said I didn't want to hang out with you. I just don't think we should be getting into anything other than a friendship, if that's what you want. I've already been hurt by Finn, and I can't handle getting hurt by someone else right now."

_Man, I am so selfish. Here I am telling Rachel what I want and I haven't even stopped to think about her feelings. She has every right to be mad at me, or be worried that I'm going to hurt her. I always end up doing it, and she knows that I can't be trusted. It's probably for the best. But I can't just hang out with her, these feelings, whatever they are, will only get stronger. I can't stop hanging out with her either; I wouldn't be able to handle it. _

"Rachel, I'm sorry, it was selfish of me to say those things. I do like you, and I really don't want to stop hanging out with you."

"Me either." She got up from the bed for the final time and headed for the door.

"Oh, and one more thing," said Puck.

She turned around to look at him. Soon after, her lips were moving as one with his. He couldn't contain himself anymore. He **had **to kiss Rachel; he had to know if she felt the same way he did. He wasn't sure what this feeling was, he certainly wasn't in love, but it was very possible that he had fallen for Rachel Berry.


	8. Then prove it

Puck woke up early with a huge smile on his face. He wasn't sure why he was so damn happy, but it was probably due to the fact that he'd finally kissed Rachel. It was probably also because he'd be able to hang out with her after school today. It would be the first time they'd see each other since the kiss. The last few days were spent avoiding each other in the hallway, and when they had Glee rehearsal, Mr. Schuster made sure they were focusing on their projects. But today was Rachel and Puck's day to use the choir room to practice for their duet. They could be alone and finally hash out everything they were feeling. So as soon as school was over Puck walked as fast as he could to the choir room. When he got there, Brittany and Finn were still rehearsing. They decided to sing "Broken Strings" by James Morrison and Nelly Furtado. He listened from outside the door and thought that they might actually have a chance at winning this thing. They sounded really good. Just as they were finishing up, Rachel hobbled in with her crutches. Puck was just about to come out from behind the door when Finn pulled Rachel aside.

"Hey Rachel, I've been wanting to talk to you."

"Sure, what's up Finn?"

"How have you been feeling?" he asked; seeming genuinely concerned.

"Okay, I'm getting through it. It still hurts a lot though. I'm not even sure if I'm gonna be able to go to Sectionals." She sounded disappointed.

"I hope you make it. We all need you there; it wouldn't be the same without you." He put his hand on her good shoulder and they stood there smiling at each other. "So look, I wanted to ask you something," Finn continued.

This was what Puck wanted to hear. What could Finn possibly want to ask Rachel? Finn was just about to ask his question when Marcus (from the football team) walked past Puck.

"Hey, so I hear you're actually enjoying this gay-fest? What's up with that, Puck?"

Puck was embarrassed. How did they figure that out?

"Who told you that?" he casually asked.

"We had Matt and Mike join to spy on you, cause we figured you'd do this. They also told us that it looks like you're starting to fall for Rachel Berry? Dude, she's the most annoying girl ever! What's up with you? What, did Glee turn you soft?" Marcus said, making fun of him.

"I never said I liked Rachel Berry." Just because he didn't say it, didn't mean it wasn't true. It was, but he just couldn't tell his teammates that. He wasn't ready.

"Then prove it."

"How?"

Marcus smiled smugly and Puck knew he wasn't going to like this plan.


	9. The Slushie Plan

The whole football team had set up a plan for Puck to prove that he didn't have feelings for Rachel and in order to do that, he had to throw an ice cold slushie in her face while Marcus recorded the whole thing. It would then be put up on the school website for everyone to see. He didn't want to go along with it, but he couldn't ruin his reputation either.

_I can't do this to her, I just can't, he thought while waiting for Rachel to finish her conversation with Finn. He was very uncomfortable with this situation. He shifted back and forth while tapping on the cup. As soon as he saw Rachel walk out of the choir room, he had a lump in his throat. He really didn't want to do this, but what other choice did he have? Why couldn't Finn have talked to her longer? When he needed him to talk to her, he kept the conversation short. Just like Finn. _

"Hey Noah, I'm glad you could make it. I was just talking to Finn…" Rachel said walking up to her locker. Before Puck did anything, he looked back at Marcus who was waiting in the wings; video camera ready to film.

"Rachel," he said getting her attention. She stopped putting her books in her locker to look at him. As soon as she did, he threw the slushie at her. Blue slushie dripped all down her face and it even went into her clothes. Because Puck was so close to her, the force of the slushie made her lose her balance and she fell backwards onto her crutches. When Puck realized what he did, he tried to help her up, but it was clear she didn't want his help.

"Get away from me," she said; obviously not pleased.

"Good work Puck. You proved us wrong; you don't have feelings for her. Guess your reputation is still intact," said Marcus coming out of hiding and holding up the video camera for Rachel to see.

"You set this up?" she said; embarrassed.

"I, no, I mean yes, but…" Puck knew nothing he said could justify what he'd just done.

When Finn came out of the choir room, he saw the commotion and ran straight to Rachel's side.

"I think you need to leave," ordered Finn as he picked up Rachel's slushie-covered books. Knowing what he did was wrong, Puck walked away. As he was walking away, he looked at the empty plastic cup in his hand.

_How could you do that to Rachel? She never did anything to you. No actually, she just helped you become a better person. She tutored you. She believed in you and that's how you repay her. _Puck couldn't stand himself for doing what he did to her. Not only did he embarrass her for the whole school to see, but he could have hurt her worse than he already did. She already had a dislocated shoulder, broken ribs, and bruises all over because of him. He went out to the parking lot and sat in his red pickup truck. He hadn't touched the steering wheel of a car since the accident, but sitting in his truck allowed him time to think. He was expecting Rachel or Finn to walk to their cars, but an hour later, they still hadn't come out.

_What's taking them so long? I'm gonna go find out. _He knew he'd already caused enough trouble, but he couldn't leave Rachel like that. He knew another apology wouldn't make up for even a little bit of the pain she was feeling; literally and figuratively, but he had to do something. He couldn't just sit around and let that video end up on the school's website. He got out of his truck and walked over to Marcus.

"Hey Puck, uploading the video right now," he said messing with a laptop.

"Don't!" urged Puck "Just don't do it. We've already caused her enough embarrassment; we don't need to show the whole school."

"Are you feeling bad for her?" laughed Marcus.

"Don't you?"

"Uh, no. Rachel's annoying as hell, she deserved it."

"How could you think like that? Rachel's never done anything to you or me or anyone else for that matter. She's always been nice to me even when I've treated her like crap. I don't get why you guys are always picking on her," Puck said guiltily.

"Maybe you do have feelings for Berry. Glee has made you soft, man. I don't even know who you are anymore."

"Well that's a good thing. Just make sure you don't upload that video."

"You can't stop me."

"You think so?" Puck grabbed the camera from Marcus' hand and threw it on the concrete. He stepped on it and smashed it to pieces.

"What the hell! That's my camera!" he said, pushing Puck.

"I told you not to do it." Marcus continued to talk about how 'Puck was going to regret it' but he just walked away. He had to know if Rachel was alright. Who was he kidding, Rachel wasn't alright. She probably wanted to kill him. He couldn't blame her, he wanted to kill himself. When he returned inside the school, Finn was standing outside the girls' bathroom. He was talking to someone; probably Rachel, who was on the other side of the door. Finn noticed Puck walking towards him.

"You really shouldn't be here right now," scoffed Finn.

"I know… but, how's she?" Puck really was concerned about Rachel.

"How do you think, idiot? She's crying. She's even got a new bruise on her back and her shoulder hurts worse than it did before. So congratulations, you saved your reputation at the risk of losing Rachel. How does it feel?" Finn said sarcastically.

Before Puck answered him, Rachel came out of the bathroom with Quinn's arm around her waist. Finn must have called her to help. The slushie dyed most of her shirt blue and she still had corn syrup in her hair. As soon as Rachel saw him, she started to walk the other way.

"Wait, Rachel," Puck called after her.

"You should leave," ordered Finn again.

"I have to talk to her." He pushed Finn's hand away and ran over to where Rachel was.

"Rachel," he started.

"First of all, don't even say you're sorry, because I won't believe it. I don't believe **anything **you say anymore. You say how I've changed you, how you need me in your life. Well I'm done with you. Find a new tutor; find a new victim to bully, because I won't take it anymore. I got past everything else you've ever done to me, but this time it's different. I can't trust you anymore, Puck." She called him Puck. She can't; she always called him Noah. She was supposed to call him Noah. "And I'm asking Mr. Schuster to change partners. I know he said that wasn't allowed, but I think he'll make an exception in this case." She looked at him in a way that he'd never seen Rachel look at him before. Her eyes were like daggers stabbing him repeatedly in the heart. He couldn't stand her being mad at him.

"Here," he handed her his blue and white football jersey.

"I don't want it." She pushed the jersey back into his hand. Quinn and Rachel continued walking away. He stood there until they were out of sight.

"Give this to her please," Puck begged Finn.

"She doesn't want it."

"Please. I know you don't owe me any favors and neither does she, but please just do this one thing and I'll stay away from her. I promise."

"And to think she thought you had changed," said Finn.

"What do you mean?" Puck asked; interested.

"What'd you think we were talking about in there?" Finn asked like it was obvious.

"I thought you were, well I don't know actually."

"She was talking about you the whole time. She said how much she was really starting to like you. She really wanted to be your friend. She said she was so proud of you. She said she believed you were a good guy after all, but apparently she was wrong." That took Puck off guard. Rachel not only believed in him and wanted him to be better, but she was proud of him? He was never told by anyone, not even his mom, that they were proud of him. He really did screw things up. He had nothing else to say to Finn, so he dejectedly took the long walk of shame home.


	10. You've got it bad

**A/N: Again, I own nothing from Glee. Songs in this chapter "From the Inside," by Linkin Park. I'm working on the next chapter right now!**

* * *

Friday was the last day to practice before the project was due. Since Mr. Schuster paired Rachel with Kurt, Puck was now paired with Quinn. Puck and Quinn were scheduled to practice in the auditorium at 2:55. Rachel and Kurt were scheduled to practice before them. He thought that by showing up early, he might have gotten to see Rachel. He hadn't talked to her in a week and it killed him. He missed hanging out with her. He missed her tutoring sessions. Now that she had stopped tutoring him, his grades were falling.

He walked into the auditorium from the back entrance. To his surprise, Rachel was the only one there. Kurt must have left. She was sitting on stage with her back to him. She was playing the piano and singing a song that Puck had never heard before. It wasn't the type of music she normally listened to; it was raw and stripped down. If he didn't know any better, he'd say she wrote it herself. It seemed to describe how anyone in Rachel's situation would be feeling. He closed his eyes and listened to her voice. She really did have an amazing voice. No one's perfect, but if anyone came close, it was Rachel Berry.

_I don't know who to trust no surprise _

_Everyone feels so far away from me _

_Heavy thoughts sift through dust and the lies _

_Trying not to break but I'm so tired of this deceit _

_Every time I try to make myself get back up on my feet _

_All I ever think about is this_

_All the tiring time between _

_And how trying to put my trust in you just takes so much out of me _

_Take everything from the inside and throw it all away _

_Cuz I swear for the last time I won't trust myself with you _

_Tension is building inside steadily_

_Everyone feels so far away from me _

_Heavy thoughts forcing their way out of me_

_Trying not to break but I'm so tired of this deceit_

_Every time I try to make myself get back up on my feet_

_All I ever think about is this_

_All the tiring time between_

_And how trying to put my trust in you just takes so much out of me_

_Take everything from the inside and throw it all away _

_Cuz I swear for the last time I won't trust myself with you_

_I won't waste myself on you _

_You_

_You_

_Waste myself on you_

_You _

_You_

_I'll take everything from the inside and throw it all away _

_Cuz I swear for the last time I won't trust myself with you _

_Everything from the inside and just throw it all away _

_Cuz I swear for the last time I won't trust myself with you _

_You _

_You_

When Puck opened his eyes he could have sworn he saw Rachel crying. She got up from the piano and left the auditorium through the front exit. He thought about following her, but he couldn't cause her more pain than he already did.

"She's amazing, isn't she?" said a voice from behind him. He turned around and saw that it was Quinn. Since when did Quinn think Rachel was amazing? She hated her.

"Yeah, she is. I didn't think you thought so." He stayed where he was; not even acknowledging Quinn. She walked toward him and sat in the seat behind him. She leaned her head against his seat.

"Well after seeing her like that last week, it really made me respect her a lot more. I've been over to her house every day since. She's a really amazing person." He still couldn't believe that Quinn was saying those words about Rachel.

"Yeah, she is," he said again.

"You've got it bad," Quinn smirked, "I've seen the way you look at her. You've never looked at any other girl that way, well not that I've ever seen. You are so hard on youself when you let her down or hurt her in some way. I hate to break it to you, but it sounds to me like you're in love with her," Quinn said plainly. Puck didn't argue with her. He was tired of denying how he felt about Rachel. Maybe he was in love with her. So what if he was? Why did everyone care so much about what he felt about whom anyway?

"She doesn't feel the same," was all he said.

"Are you sure about that?"

"Yes. Why has she told you any differently?" He asked finally turning to face her.

"I can't say, but I _can _tell you that you shouldn't give up just yet."

"But what am I supposed to do? She can't even stand to be in the same room as me." He was really hurting. He realized he did need Rachel more than he ever thought he did.

"I have an idea," Quinn beamed, "we'll use our project to try and get Rachel to forgive you."

"Why are you helping me?" he asked Quinn. "I've never been nice to you."

"Because I know what it feels like to have your heart broken. I also know what it feels like to be judged," she said pointing to her pregnant belly. He had forgotten that Quinn was pregnant.

"Do you know whose baby it is?" he asked. Quinn didn't respond, so Puck asked his question again, "Quinn, whose baby is it?" She didn't have to answer this time for him to know.

"Finn can't find out," she said softly.

"Neither can Rachel." He knew if Finn found out, he'd tell Rachel and vice versa.

"That's why you have to promise not to tell **anyone**," said Quinn emphasizing the word, anyone. After a few minutes of silence, she spoke again. Her mood suddenly changed from frightened to excited.

Now all we have to do is make Rachel forgive you." She jumped out of her seat. "C'mon, let's get to it!" she said excitedly. She really hoped that her plan would work not just for Puck, but for Rachel too.


	11. Whatever It Takes

**A/N: The songs used in this chapter are "Let it rain" by Jordin Sparks and "Whatever it takes" by Lifehouse. Please R/R. Thanks for all the amazing reviews so far! I love hearing what you guys think.**

So Quinn and Puck got to work on their project. Since they had to switch partners at the last minute, Mr. Schuster gave them one more week to do their project. Almost every hour that wasn't spent in school was spent at Puck's house perfecting their routine. Puck was surprised that Quinn was actually willing to work this hard to help him out, but he was glad she did.

The whole Glee club piled into the auditorium early Tuesday morning to hear Kurt & Rachel and Puck & Quinn perform their duets. Since every other pair already performed, today was the last day. Puck and Quinn were performing last, so they sat in the audience and waited for their turn.

"Good morning Glee club," Mr. Schuster said into the microphone.

"Good morning," they all said back.

"Okay, we'll start our morning with a performance by Rachel and Kurt." Mr. Schuster got offstage and a few minutes later Rachel and Kurt appeared from either side of the stage. Rachel started off the song:

_Shout it out_

_I can't hold back no more_

_I let it out_

_All these feelings that were _

_Trapped inside _

_I was frozen every time_

_I looked in your eyes _

_Clear my head_

_From all the cluttered things_

_I should've said _

_That wasn't me_

_No I can't live like that _

_I'm waking up and there is no _

_Looking back_

Kurt joined in on the chorus:

_Every little tear _

_I was scared to cry _

_Everything I feared_

_But I kept inside_

_I don't wanna hold_

_It back one more day_

_Oh wash it away_

_Every tiny though clouding _

_Up my head_

_Every single word that _

_I never said _

_I refuse to feel ashamed_

_Let it rain_

_Let it rain_

Even when she had to put together a performance in just a week, she could still pull it off. Puck watched in amazement at their performance. Rachel was incredible, and anyone who denied that didn't know what they were talking about.

_Clear the sky_

_I start to breathe again_

_No-thing to hide_

_Let you through to who _

_I am inside_

_Every layer_

'_Til you get underneath my skin _

_Let you in, let you in_

_Every little tear _

_I was scared to cry _

_Everything I feared_

_But I kept inside_

_I don't wanna hold it back _

_One more day _

_Oh wash it away _

_Every tiny thought_

_Clouding up my head_

_Every single word that _

_I never said _

_I refuse to feel ashamed_

_Let it rain_

_Let it rain_

Once they finished, the whole glee club was cheering loudly. It was hard not to have that effect when Rachel performed. Kurt even did better than Puck thought he ever could.

"That was great! Give it up for Rachel and Kurt," said Mr. Schuster coming onstage. Rachel and Kurt walked offstage and received high fives from almost every member of the club.

"Now for our final performance, we have Quinn and Puck performing an original song." Every clapped except for Rachel.

Puck had to take a moment to breathe before he went onstage. His nerves were jangling him. He was so scared that their plan wouldn't work. _What am I going to do if it doesn't work? I need Rachel to forgive me. _Quinn was already onstage and was waiting for Puck. She pulled out a stool and Puck grabbed his guitar from under his seat. Quinn would be dancing and Puck would be singing.

_A strangled smile fell from your face_

_It kills me that I hurt you this way _

_The worst part is that I didn't even know _

_Now there's a million reasons for you to go _

_But if you can find a reason to stay _

_I'll do whatever it takes _

_To turn this around_

_I know what's at stake _

_I know that I've let you down _

_And if you give me a chance_

_Believe it, I can change_

_I'll keep us together _

_Whatever it takes _

Puck continued to strum on his guitar and sing while Quinn did some ballet moves all around the stage. He didn't even know that Quinn could do ballet, but he knew he owed her. Even if the plan didn't work, she was willing to help him, and that was more than he could have ever asked for.

_She said, "If we're gonna make this work _

_You gotta let me inside, even though it hurts"_

_Don't hide the broken parts that I need to see _

_She said, "Like it or not, it's the way it's gotta be_

_You gotta love yourself if you can ever love me" _

_I'll do whatever it takes_

_To turn this around_

_I know what's at stake _

_I know that I've let you down_

_And if you give me a chance_

_And give me a break_

_I'll keep us together _

_I know you deserve much better_

_Remember the time I told you the way that I felt_

_And that I'd be lose without you and never find myself _

_Let's hold onto each other above everything else_

_Start over, start over _

_I'll do whatever it takes_

_To turn this around _

_I know what's at stake _

_I know that I've let you down_

_And if you give me a chance_

_Believe it, I can change _

_I'll keep us together _

_Whatever it takes _

He was just as nervous when he finished the performance as he was when he started. He had very little hope that it would work; but hope nonetheless. _Hopefully Rachel knew that this song was for her. Hopefully she'll forgive me. _He decided he'd ask her when they were alone. It wasn't that he wanted to hide what he felt for her; after all he had just put his heart on his sleeve for the whole glee club to see, but he couldn't handle it if she rejected him. It would hurt even worse if everyone had to see him get rejected. So as soon as they were finished, he put his guitar away and hopped offstage. Once Mr. Schuster said it was okay, the club started leaving the auditorium. Rachel was the last one there; of course, she still had to walk with those freaking crutches. Puck knew this was his only chance to ask her opinion on his song; any other time, Finn or another glee club member would be around.

"Hey," he said quietly as he walked up to her seat. She ignored him, but he expected that. "I wanted to get your opinion on my song," he asked hopeful.

"Why would you care what I think?" she asked stuffing papers and books into her backpack.

"I wrote it for you. I was hoping that maybe you'd find it in your heart to forgive me." He thought he was nervous for his performance. No. Up until now, he's never been more anxious in his life. He hated this whole "being in love feeling." It sucked. Now he knew what it felt like when he'd hurt all those other girls he dated.

Rachel turned around and looked at him.

"You thought you could sing me some song you wrote and it would make everything better? That it would justify what you did to me? That suddenly everything's okay, Rachel forgives you, all because you sung her a song?!" He could tell she was still upset. She was making all kinds of hand gestures and her face was turning red. She clearly wasn't ready to forgive him.

When Puck didn't answer her, she continued to talk.

"Well you were wrong, Puck. I don't forgive you, and one little song isn't going to make up for everything you did. I don't even know why you're trying so hard, it's not like you actually care about being friends with me."

"Maybe I don't just want to be friends with you, Rachel. I know you hate me right now, and you probably don't want anything to do with me, but I'm not giving up yet." He didn't say it offensively, he didn't say it forcefully; he said it like he meant every word.

"Well then if you really care so much, try harder."

"I'll try as hard as I can; I'll try everything I can to show you that you mean a lot to me, Rachel. You might not think so now, but I'll find a way." He left Rachel to her thoughts. Once he was gone, she sighed and sat back down for a few minutes to process what just happened. 1. Puck had written a song for her. 2. Puck actually wanted to be her friend. No actually scratch that. 2. Puck wanted to be more than friends with her. 3. He wasn't going to stop trying until she forgave him. Since when did Puck care so much about Rachel? He'd never sang a song to Santana in front of everyone. He never cared when Santana broke up with him. Why did he care that Rachel didn't forgive him? She wasn't sure, but she sort of liked it. Her feelings for Finn suddenly seemed so silly now.


	12. The note

**A/N: Okay, I'm not quite sure if this chapter is alright. Let me know! I added some new stuff to chapter 3, 10, and this one. It's about Quinn and the baby. Instead of it being Finn's, it is indeed Puck's baby, so that should bring something interesting to his and Rachel's relationship. Tell me if it's too cheesy or just right or what. Thanks for reading and reviewing and please continue to do so. You're awesome! **

"Quinn!" called Puck after leaving the auditorium. "I wanted to thank you for helping me with Rachel.

"But my plan didn't work out so well," she said feeling bad.

"No, I think it worked out a lot better than I thought it was going to. It really meant a lot to me that you tried so hard," he said with his most sincere gratitude.

"I just hope things work out for you and Rachel," she said smiling, "you two are so good for each other."

"Thanks. I hope so too." They awkwardly stood there; not saying much to each other. They both knew what they wanted to talk to the other about, but neither wanted to bring it up.

"So, um, how is the baby?" Puck asked; looking at the white marble floor beneath his feet.

"She's fine," said Quinn. He looked up at her.

"It's a girl?"

"Yes." Quinn smiled.

"Do you know what you're going to do yet?"

"I'm not keeping her; I can't keep her. I hope you can accept that," she said firmly.

"I do accept it. I still want to be a good father to our baby though. I'm going to find a way to help you out, Quinn," said Puck understandingly. Quinn just flashed him a smile and walked away. Once Quinn was gone, he had to sit down against the lockers. His head felt like it was in a million different directions. He was having a baby with a girl he thought he had feelings for; his best friend's girlfriend, and now he was "in love" with a girl he used to think was the most annoying person on the planet. _This is why I hate feelings. They're so damn confusing. One minute you like this person and the next you're in love with someone else? It's why I've never gotten close to anyone. _

Puck averted his attention back to his Rachel problem. He still had Quinn and the baby in the back of his mind, but he really couldn't stop thinking about Rachel either. He knew he'd have to try hard. He knew Rachel wouldn't just give in so easily; that wasn't like her. That was one of the reasons he liked her so much. She didn't care if you liked her or not, she was going to be herself. He used to think that was annoying, but hanging out with Rachel a few weeks ago changed his mind. She suddenly wasn't this flamboyant self-proclaimed diva anymore. He saw her as a strong girl who stood up for what she believed in and wasn't going to change herself for anyone. He saw her as a talented, truly amazing individual. He saw her as beautiful. _Damn that Rachel Berry. Why did she have to be so attractive?_ He didn't mind anyway. He was head over heels in love with her. _Anyway, back to the plan. How am I gonna get Rachel to forgive me? _He knew the next time he'd see Rachel was in Biology; their last class of the day and the only class they had together besides Glee. It seemed that lately the only thing on his mind was getting Rachel to forgive him. It's all he thought about; it's all he wanted.

"Rachel," Puck whispered. Lucky for him, she sat right next to him in Biology.

"What do you want?" she said; keeping her eyes on Mrs. Tula's lesson for the day: reproduction.

"Here." He handed her a crumpled up piece of paper.

"Is this gonna be another note about how desperate I am?" she said referring to the night of their accident.

"No, I promise. Here, take it." He shoved the note onto her desk. Just as Rachel was about to open the note, Mrs. Tula walked over to her desk.

"Rachel, may I have that note?" Mrs. Tula was one of the only teachers that would call you out. "And it's a note from Noah Puckerman. Would you like me to read it to the class or would you like to do it yourself?" I guess she thought that this would embarrass Puck, but this was exactly what he wanted. It's why he didn't wait to give Rachel the note.

"No, Mrs. Tula. I think this will be much more effective if I read it." _Effective, since when did I start using words like effective? Rachel must be rubbing off on me. _He walked up to the front of the class with his head held high. For some reason, this plan seemed like it could actually work. He had more hope in this plan than all of his other plans before. Once Puck was at the front of the class, he opened the note and read it to the class: "_I wanted to start off by saying that I'm sorry. I know I am always saying sorry to you, but I just don't know of any other way to apologize. If I could, I would take back every harsh word I ever said about, every slushie I've ever thrown at you, and every bit of pain that I ever caused you, because you don't deserve that. You are the most beautiful, talented, and sweetest girl I've ever known. I want you to know that you mean more to me than anyone else. You're the only girl I've ever known, hell, the only person I've ever known that's actually encouraged me. You've made me want to change and become a better person. You've showed me so many things that alone I'd never find. And those are just some of the reasons why I have fallen for you. You're amazing, Rachel. You aren't afraid to call me on my crap. You believe in me and that means more to me than I could ever explain. You've made me realize so many things about myself; good and bad. I'm not even quite sure how all of this happened, but I'm extremely glad it did. I know I'm lucky to have someone like you in my life; well, I __**had **__someone like you in my life. I can't even begin to thank you for everything you've done for me. I know I'd never be able to repay you in a million years. Okay, so I guess what I'm trying to say here is that I like you, Rach; __**a lot,**__ probably way more than I've ever liked any other girl before. I'm sorry if I haven't always treated you right, or if it felt like I didn't care or was embarrassed to be seen with you, because I'm not. I don't care who knows anymore, it's not their life, it's mine. I can't fight this feeling anymore, so I figured I'd just tell you. _He threw the title of the song they had sung at the karaoke bar in the note just because he thought it'd make her laugh._ Sorry, I probably went on way longer than I was supposed to. So Rachel, I really hope you can forgive me for everything I've ever done to you." _As soon as Puck finished, the girls in the class were "awing" and "wasn't that so sweeting" while the guys were talking about how "he was so whipped" and "he picked her when he could have had any girl he wanted." Puck didn't care. He knew what he felt and he didn't care who knew it.

"Alright class, that's enough. Thank you, Noah, for that lovely presentation of yours." Mrs. Tula took the note out of his hand and threw it out. She sent Puck back to his seat. As he walked back to his seat, he saw Rachel smile out of the corner of his eye. He figured that his plan had worked.


	13. This is what it feels like to be in love

**A/N: In this chapter, I decided to try something different. Not only can you hear Puck's thoughts now, but I'm gonna add Rachel's thoughts. Again, I own nothing. Please R/R. Songs in this chapter: Rachel's song: Irresistible by Jessica Simpson and Puck's song: True by Ryan Cabrera. **

After class, Puck was on his way to his locker when he heard someone call his name.

"Noah, wait!" yelled Rachel walking towards him on her crutches. _She called me Noah that must be a good sign._

"So what'd you think?" he said smugly while leaning against the wall. She pulled at his shirt collar, bringing him closer to her where she then pressed her lips against his. On the outside, Puck was ecstatic. On the inside, he was just as happy. He could have jumped up and clicked his heels like they do in those movies, but he wasn't that whipped. He wanted that moment to last forever, but he knew it had to end eventually. He didn't want to get too eager or too into the kiss what with all of the kids in the hallway staring, so he gently pushed her back. "I'm guessing you accept my apology?"

"Well..." she said teasingly. He gave her his best puppy dog pout.

"Yes, I accept your apology," she said regaining her balance. She got so into the kiss that she had totally forgotten about her crutches.

"Thank you!" he said relieved. He pulled her into a hug and the warmth of her body made him get tingles in his spine. _So this is what it feels like to be in love, he thought to himself. _

"I wanted to ask you something that I didn't get to mention in my note," he said helping her stay up.

"Thank you for that by the way. Nobody has ever said such nice things about me. So what was it you wanted to ask me?" She seemed to lighten up when she was with him; she didn't always talk so properly, although he didn't mind that much anymore.

"I want to know if you would go out on a date with me," he said timidly.

"You don't consider our karaoke duet a date?" He tensed up a little. _Uh oh, I wasn't sure if that was a date. _He looked up at her and saw that she was joking. His body relaxed.

"Hardly, you're on these crutches because of that night; because of me," he said modestly. She put both of her hands on either side of his face.

"Look at me," she said looking into his eyes, "I don't blame you for what happened that night. It wasn't your fault and you need to stop blaming yourself. If it wasn't us, it could have been somebody else. I'm just very fortunate that I've been given a chance to live. So what if I have some bruises and a few broken bones? I had fun that night and I wouldn't change a thing. Except maybe reading the note and…" there was the Rachel he fell in love with; the one who constantly rambled when she was nervous.

"Rachel, I-I…" He was going to say "I love you," but changed his mind. What if she didn't feel the same? After all, he knew she liked Finn. Maybe this was just one date to her.

"Yes, Noah?"

"I-I'll see you tonight, 7?" he said walking backward toward the exit.

"Sounds great." She smiled at him as he walked away. _What am I doing? I know he just said he liked me in front of our whole Biology class, but what if that's all it is to him; one date? _She decided she wasn't going to get worked up over something that hadn't even happened yet.

Rachel hobbled into the Glee room to practice. She always went there after school, even if Glee club didn't rehearse that afternoon. It just gave her time to really be by herself and think about things. Today was one of the days she really needed to think about things. When she got to the choir room, she sat down at the piano. Words and melodies filled her head. She quickly wrote them down on paper so she wouldn't forget. She then turned the words on the paper into a song. She seemed to be doing that a lot lately; writing songs.

_You know, I don't know what it is _

_But everything about you is so irresistible _

_Don't you try to tell me that he's not my type_

_To idle what I feel inside_

_When he makes me weak with desire _

_I know that I'm supposed to make him wait _

_Let him think I like the chase_

_But I can't stop fanning the fire _

_I know I'm meant to say no_

_But he's irresistible_

_Up close and personal _

_Now inescapable_

_I can hardly breathe_

_More than just physical _

_Deeper than spiritual _

_His ways are powerful _

_Irresistible to me _

_I can hardly breathe _

_Don't you think I'm trying to tell my heart what's right _

_That I should really say goodnight_

_But I just can't stop myself from falling_

_Maybe I'll tell him that I feel the same _

_I don't want to play no game_

_Cause when I feel his arms wrapped around me_

_I know I'm meant to say no (I'm meant to say no) _

_He's irresistible (irresistible)_

_Up close and personal _

_Now inescapable_

_I can hardly breathe (I can hardly breathe) _

_More than just physical _

_Deeper than spiritual (oh yeah) _

_His ways are powerful _

_Irresistible to me _

_Can't you see_

_Whenever he's close to me _

_I really find it hard to breathe _

_He's so irresistible _

_Baby you know _

_You're more than just spiritual _

_His kisses are powerful _

_He's so irresistible _

_(You're so irresistible) _

_He's irresistible _

_Up close and personal _

_Now inescapable _

_I can hardly breathe _

_More than just physical _

_Deeper and spiritual _

_His ways are powerful _

_Irresistible to me _

_Irresistible to me_

When she was done, she laid her head down on the piano. She wasn't sure why she was feeling this way.

"That darn Noah. Why did he have to be so irresistible?" she said out loud. She jumped when she heard giggles coming from somewhere. She looked around, but she saw no one.

"I'm over here," said Kurt wiggling his fingers in a wave. Rachel's face flushed red. She didn't think anybody was here. She didn't think anybody heard her sing.

"I thought you were singing about Finn, but I guess those unrequited feelings you had for him are no longer there?" he said as if he already knew.

"I-I, well I was just…"

"Alright slow down there, Tina," he said referring to the way Rachel was stuttering, "tell me everything," he said sitting on the piano bench next to her.

"I'm just confused. I thought I liked Finn, but when I see him now, I don't feel the way I used to. I used to get so happy when I'd see him and so jealous when he was with Quinn, but now all those feelings I had for Finn…" she trailed off. Kurt already knew what she was going to say though.

"You now have for Puck," he said affectionately. She just shook her head yes. "Well this is interesting!" he squealed.

Rachel raised one eyebrow in confusion. "Excuse me; are we actually having a conversation without wanting to claw each other's eyes out?"

"Why I believe we are, love." He nudged her with his shoulder.

"Well that could be partly due to the fact that I no longer have feelings for a certain someone that you have feelings for," she said hinting at Finn.

"Less competition for me," he laughed. She laughed along with him.

"I was wondering if you could, maybe, help me pick something out for tonight." Rachel asked embarrassed.

"What's the occasion?"

"A date," she paused, "with Noah." He clapped his hands together; obviously pleased.

"Well you'll have to ditch the whole schoolgirl look. Although attractive in school, you have got to switch it up a bit; let's go for an edgier look. Where is he taking you?"

"I'm not sure," she said.

"I'll figure it out. Gotta go!" he said as he chipperly ran out the door. She chuckled to herself as she watched Kurt leave. _He's probably way more excited for my date than I am._

Puck walked into the auditorium. He figured he had some time to kill before his date. He didn't have football practice and Glee rehearsal wasn't for a few more days; so there was no place else he'd rather be; except of course with Rachel. He looked around making sure that no one was there. He sat down onstage and opened his guitar case. He started playing around with a few chords and soon found himself singing a new song. He did that a lot lately; wrote songs.

_**I won't talk **_

_**I won't breathe **_

_**I won't move till you finally see **_

_**That you belong with me **_

_**You might think I don't look **_

_**But deep inside **_

_**In the corner of my mind **_

_**I'm attached to you **_

_**I'm weak **_

_**It's true **_

_**Cause I'm afraid to know the answer **_

_**Do you want me too? **_

_**Cause my heart keeps falling faster **_

_**I've waited all my life **_

_**To cross this line**_

_**To the only thing that's true **_

_**So I will not hide**_

_**It's time to try **_

_**Anything to be with you**_

_**All my life I've waited **_

_**This is true**_

_**You don't know what you do **_

_**Every time you walk into the room**_

_**I'm afraid to move**_

_**I'm weak**_

_**It's true **_

_**I'm just scared to know the ending**_

_**Do you see me too? **_

_**Do you even know you met me? **_

_**I've waited all my life to cross this line**_

_**To the only thing that's true **_

_**So I will not hide**_

_**It's time to try anything to be with you **_

_**All my life I've waited **_

_**This is true **_

_**I know when I go I'll be on my way to you **_

_**The way that's true **_

_**I've waited all my life to cross this line**_

_**To the only thing that's true **_

_**So I will not hide**_

_**It's time to try anything to be with you **_

_**All my life I've waited **_

_**This is true **_

He let out a sigh and put his guitar down. That's when he heard someone clap. He thought he was alone.

"Pretty fly for a white guy, Mohawk." Obviously, it was Mercedes. She came down from where she was sitting on the balcony and walked towards the stage. "So who was that about?"

He looked at her, like he expected her to know.

"Well I'm guessing it's Rachel. Everybody knows you have some crush on her, and everybody knows that she's seeing you differently too." That had made him feel a little better. At least people noticed that Rachel liked him.

"It's Rachel," was the only thing he said.

"I knew it," she said proudly. "So why don't you ask her out?" she said leaning against the stage.

"I did. We're going out tonight."

"How did I not know this? I'm usually up to date on all the gossip. Well anyway, you better not hurt her white boy." He looked at Mercedes like she was crazy; 1. because he wouldn't ever think of hurting Rachel again and 2. Since when did she care about Rachel?

"Look, I'm not best friends with Rachel; she's too headstrong and I'm too headstrong, but she's our star. Plus, I do have a heart y'know and I care if she gets hurt. All of us are a team, so we have to treat each other right."

"I don't plan on hurting Rachel; I'd never do that to her," he said seriously.

"Man, Rachel's got you whipped," said Mercedes letting out one of her loud 'Mercedes' laughs, but it wasn't meant offensively. "That's not a bad thing. I wish I had that effect on guys," she said wishfully.

"You'll find someone Mercedes," he said sympathetically.

"Thanks white boy. So are we actually having a conversation and I don't feel the need to cut you?" she said mockingly.

"You know what, I think we are."

"So where are you taking Rachel?" asked an interested Mercedes.

"I'm not sure yet. That's what I wanted to ask you; you're up to date on all the hottest happenings around."

"Puck is actually coming to me for help?" she said; surprised. "Rachel really does have you whipped. Alright, so there's this winter fair about 19 miles from here. It has performances, ice skating, dancing, games, restaurants, and just about anything you can think of. It's something Rachel would love to go to," Mercedes suggested.

"Sounds perfect, thanks Mercedes!" He ran offstage and out of the school to go get ready for their date.


	14. The date

"Okay, so he's taking you to a winter fair!" said Kurt coming out of Rachel's bathroom with a kit full of makeup and a few outfit choices.

"How do you know?"

"Mercedes told me." _Mercedes, she thought, since when did Puck and Mercedes talk? Mercedes was probably wondering the same thing about Kurt and me. _

"So a winter fair? What kind of things are you supposed to wear to a winter fair?" she said sitting on the edge of her bed.

"Well sequined legwarmers are a no," he said tossing her few pairs to the side.

"But, but," she stopped. She knew there was no point arguing with Kurt; he knew his fashion.

"And the pants suits; have got to go," he said tossing those to the side as well. "Now this, this is perfect." He was holding up an outfit that Rachel didn't think she could pull off.

"Do you really think I can pull that off?" she asked him modestly.

"Girl, you've got curves, trust me, he'll go crazy when he sees you in this."

"Thank you so much for helping me, Kurt," Rachel said; changing in the bathroom.

"Anytime darling." He was looking on her vanity and found a perfume. He spritzed a little in the air and suggested she wear it. "Oh, and I suggest you wear this," he said tossing the bottle to her.

When Puck got home, he decided to make dinner for his mother and Stacy. _Mom works so hard, the least I can do is cook for one night. _Although he had no idea what he was doing the dinner turned pretty well if he did say so himself. His mom and sister got home around 5:40.

"What's going on here?" asked his mother when she came through the door.

"Something smells yummy!" yelled Stacy.

"Hey, kiddo," said Puck picking up his little sister in his arms.

"Noah, who made dinner?" She sounded excited.

"Well I did. I figured that you work so hard and the least I can do is cook for one night," he said to his mother. When she looked at him, she saw a smile. She hardly ever saw a smile on her son's face. She knew that could only mean one thing.

"So who is she?" asked his mom as she sat down at the table.

"Who's who?" He knew who she was talking about, but he didn't feel like talking to his mom about his love life.

"This girl you're crazy about," said his mom nonchalantly.

"Her name's Rachel," he said with a bit of a red blush forming on his face.

"Ooh, Nohie's got a girlfriend," teased Stacy. He picked up his little sister and held her upside down. She giggled as he tickled her belly. "Let go, Noah!" she said laughing. He put his sister back down on the chair.

"Tell me about this Rachel girl," pushed his mom.

"Mom, I'm not gonna tell you about her."

"And why not?"

"Because, I don't know, it's embarrassing to talk to my mom about this stuff."

"Well you know I'm here if you ever wanna talk about it?" she said empathetically.

"Thanks Mom. I have a date tonight, is it alright?" He never asked his mom for permission to go out; he'd just do it.

"Of course, but only if it's with this Rachel girl." She looked at him sternly.

"Mom, Rachel's the only girl I want to go out with."

"This girl really must be something special," smiled his mom between mouthfuls of spaghetti.

"She is." He smiled and then headed out the door to pick up Rachel for their date.

As he waited for someone to answer the door, he fixed himself up. He normally would just wear jeans and a t-shirt on a regular date, but this wasn't a regular date. This was a special date with a special girl.

"Why hello," said Tim; one of Rachel's fathers. "I'm Rachel's dad, Tim."

"Hi Mr. Berry, I'm Pu- Noah Puckerman." He was so used to being called Puck that he almost had forgotten his real name.

"Rachel should be down in just a minute. Would you like to come in?" asked Rachel's other father; Bill walking in from the living room. Puck walked into the living room and sat down on the brown leather chair. He was a bit uncomfortable sitting there. He'd never met any of his previous girlfriends' parents before, so this was all new to him.

"So Noah, what are your intentions with our daughter?" said Tim as they all waited for Rachel to come downstairs.

"We're just going out on a date," he said.

"Where are you taking her?" asked Bill.

"We're going to the winter fair about 19 miles from here." Puck relaxed a little more now.

"We're very protective of our daughter, so we hope that you won't hurt her." They both looked at him with a look that said "if you hurt her, you'll regret it."

"I would never hurt Rachel, I promise," he said just as Rachel was coming down the stairs. Kurt was holding her waist to help her down the stairs. _Since when did Rachel and Kurt start hanging out? He wondered. _

"Daddy you aren't intimidating Noah, are you?" she asked both her parents.

"No, we're just letting the boy know our rules."

As soon as Puck saw Rachel, he was in awe. She was wearing an outfit that he'd never in a million years imagine her wearing. She had on some black, tight skinny jeans with a metallic racer-back tank top. Over that was an ochre cropped leather jacket. She had on black feather drop earrings with black strapped high heels. She was carrying a scaled leather tote and wore a black and white leopard print scarf around her neck. She had pink shiny gloss on her plumped up lips. He didn't even notice the crutches because he was so focused on her. He looked her up and down and he had to yank at his shirt collar a little to catch his breath. He suddenly felt hot. He touched his face and he knew he must have been blushing like crazy. He didn't care though. When he got closer to her, he noticed that she smelled like vanilla and bubblegum. If what she was wearing didn't drive him crazy, the smell sure did.

When Rachel saw Puck, she nearly fell down the stairs. He was wearing black jeans as well and instead of his normal t-shirt, he was actually wearing a blue flannel dress shirt. He still had on his black suede Nike's, but she didn't mind that. She thought it was cute. She studied him up and down and she had to yank at her jacket collar a little to catch her breath. She suddenly felt like it was 90 degrees. She knew she had to be blushing, but she didn't care. He walked up to her and she noticed that he smelled like musk and old spice. On anybody else, she would have hated it, but mixed with Noah's normal scent, it drove her crazy.

"Have her home by 11:00," her fathers warned.

"I will," he said holding the door open for Rachel.

"Goodbye you lovebirds," said Kurt once they were all outside the door. He walked home and left them to their date.

"Bye Kurt and thank you for helping me tonight!" called Rachel.

"You look fantastic," he gulped. He couldn't think of any other word to use. Well, he could, but he didn't have time to say them all.

"Thank you Noah, you look pretty good yourself," she said putting her crutches in the backseat of his truck and hopping into the passenger's seat. Before he got into the car, he composed himself. His heart was beating way faster than it normally should, but he sort of enjoyed that feeling. He calmed down and jumped into the driver's seat.

Before Puck got into the car, Rachel composed herself. She found that her palms were sweaty and she was nervous. _Calm down, Rachel, it's just Noah. Oh, who am I kidding, it's Noah. _She wiped the sweat that was beading on her forehead and Puck got into the car.


	15. You think that's funny Berry?

**A/N: Thanks for the reviews! Sorry I haven't added a chapter in a few days. I've been busy with schoolwork. Songs in this chapter: Bad Romance by Lady Gaga. I actually LOVE the song :D **

The engine of Puck's red Chevy truck roared to life as he turned the keys. He gripped the steering wheel, but couldn't seem to move his foot to push the accelerator. He stopped the engine. He started to panic a little, he had to admit, he was scared; not because of the date, but because this was the first time he'd been in a car with Rachel since the accident. He knew she didn't blame him, but he couldn't help but think that something might go wrong again.

Rachel looked at Puck and saw terror in his eyes. She had a pretty accurate guess as to why that was. She didn't blame him, but she could see why it would scare him. She had to admit she was just as scared. But she trusted Puck, so she put his mind to ease.

"Are you okay?" she asked putting her hand on his arm.

"I just, I don't want anything to happen to you," he said looking down.

"I trust you," she said sincerely. Those words were the only thing he needed to hear. After taking a minute to relax and calm himself down, Puck revved the engine yet again but this time he moved the car.

"So a winter fair?" stated Rachel, "Sounds exciting!" she said happily.

"I figured you'd be into it."

"Well your assumption would be fairly accurate, Noah," she said excitedly. She thought she might have sounded annoying. After all, he used to hate her for the way she rambled. She didn't want anything screwing up her chance with him. "I'm sorry," she said out loud.

Puck looked at her like she'd just told him she was a ghost.

"For what?" he replied.

"I know you find my vast knowledge of vocabulary annoying," she said seeming hurt. He hated that look on her face; it didn't suit her. She should always be smiling and he swore to himself right there that he'd always keep a smile on her face.

"No, no. You have nothing, _nothing, _to be sorry about, okay? I actually think its cute how you know so much," he said winking at her. She giggled like a little schoolgirl and flirted with him.

"Oh, you think so?" she said playfully.

"No, I know babe," he flirted back.

_Did he just call me babe? Okay, Rachel, calm down. It might not mean anything; it might just be a term of endearment. _

"Well I try," she said pretending to flip her hair. Puck just laughed. He loved how natural everything came when he was with Rachel.

"You don't have to try," he said sincerely.

After about a 45 minute drive, they arrived at the winter fair. When they got there, it looked like a winter wonderland. The white snow blanketed the ground and there were bright lights everywhere.

"Wow," said Rachel getting out of the car, "This is really something." Puck was about to get her crutches out of the back of the truck, when Rachel stopped him.

"Just one please," she said extending her hand. Puck obliged and handed her one crutch.

"Why just one?"

"Because if I had two, I wouldn't be able to do this…" She grabbed his hand. She saw him look at their hands and she awkwardly jerked her hand away.

"It's okay," he said as if reading her mind. He grabbed her hand this time and they interlocked their fingers. At first they just walked around, happy to be in each other's company, but after a while they started really having fun. They decided to go to the concert area and check out who was playing. Ironically enough, it was a show choir.

"And now," the announcer said, "we are lucky enough to have one of the best show choirs in Lima performing. So put your hands together for Vocal Adrenaline!" The audience hooped and hollered. Puck and Rachel watched in amazement at how good they were. They were all tossing each other around and doing crazy stunts that New Directions had never even thought about doing. They even managed to make one of Rachel's least favorite songs seem pleasantly enjoyable to her ears.

_I want your ugly, _

_I want your disease, _

_I want your everything_

_As long as it's free _

_I want your love_

_(Love-Love-Love I want your love)_

"Wow, they're really good," said Rachel gripping Puck's arm.

"Yeah, but we're better!" Puck said confidently. "Wanna get out of here?" Rachel shook her head in confirmation. As they were walking to the car, Puck noticed that Rachel was staring at the ice cream stand.

"Did you want some?" he asked looking at her.

"Oh, um, no thank you. I follow a strict diet regimen. I have to stay in shape for Glee."

"So you've never had ice cream?" he laughed. She shook her head in embarrassment.

"Well then you just have to try it, c'mon," he said pulling her towards the ice cream stand. Once they got their cones, Rachel stiffly stood there holding her cone. "So you're supposed to lick it?" she said sounding shocked.

"I can't believe you've never had ice cream. Haven't you ever at least _seen_ somebody eat it?"

"My fathers and I honorary members at Whole Foods," she said jokingly.

"Well Berry, how it is?" He asked as she sat down at the concrete bench.

"It's actually quite delicious." Puck started to laugh. "What's so funny?" she asked him.

"It's just that you've got some vanilla on your nose," he said trying to stifle his laughter.

"Where, right here?" Puck grabbed a napkin and wiped it off for her.

"Thank you Noah. You know you actually have some ice cream on your face as well." Instead of getting him a napkin, she shoved her ice cream into his face. She crinkled her nose and bit her lip in a way that drove Puck insane. He thought it was the cutest thing he'd ever seen.

"Oh you think that's funny Berry?" he said getting up from his seat.

"Yes I do actually, what are you gonna do about it?" she said teasing him. He scooped his finger in his chocolate ice cream and wiped it on her nose.

"You did not just do that!"

"But I did," he said shoving his ice cream into her face.

"Oh now you're gonna get it!" She got up on her good leg and took a big scoop of her ice cream and threw it at him. Before she could do anything else, he picked her up and spun her around.

"Noah, I insist you put me down immediately," Rachel laughed. He put her down and held onto her waist. He brushed her hair out of her face and bent down to claim her lips. She slipped her arms around his neck and played with the strip of hair on his head. When they both came up for air, Rachel's hair was disheveled. She fixed it and smiled her 'Rachel Berry' smile and Puck's heart actually went a flutter. He put his arm around her shoulder and they walked back to his truck. Once they got into the truck, Puck immediately held his hand out and they held hands for the rest of the way home.

"Thank you for tonight," said Rachel before she got out of the truck, "it was the most fun I've had in a long time.

"No, thank you. I had fun too." As they were leaning in to kiss each other, he noticed Bill standing in the doorway with his arms crossed.

"Uh, you should probably get in there." He laughed in amusement when he saw her face.

"Its fine, Daddy trusts me."

"Its not you he's worried about, it's me. This is a small town Rach, I'm sure they've heard of my reputation. Besides, I'm not the best with dads," he chuckled.

"You should just shut up and kiss me." She grabbed his shirt collar and forced his lips into a tender kiss. Something about the way she kissed him made him get this electric feeling. It sent shockwaves through his body. She took control instead of him always having to, and that was something he'd never stop liking.

It surprised Rachel at how good of a kisser Puck was. When she kissed Finn, she felt butterflies in her stomach, but when she kissed Noah it was more than that. She had no way to describe it but it felt like she was floating on cloud nine. She couldn't believe that he actually let her take control. The only other kisses she'd ever had were both with Finn, and that couldn't even compare to this.

"Okay, I have to go now," she said ending the kiss way too soon according to both of them. She got out of the car and looked back to wave at him. He stayed there until she went inside. As soon as she was gone Puck touched his fingertips to his lips. _Did that actually just happen? _He couldn't believe that even after kissing Rachel 4 times, he still felt this way. Usually when he kissed a girl, he felt nothing. It didn't matter how many times he would kiss Rachel, he knew he would always have that feeling. He started the car and drove home a very happy man.


	16. Where do we stand?

**A/N: **

Puck confidently strode into school the next morning with a bag in his hand. He had gotten there early because he knew Rachel would be practicing in the Glee room. Ever since their date the night before, he hadn't stopped smiling. It was as if the smile was just plastered onto his face. Little did he know that Rachel felt the exact same way.

"Hey you," he said walking into the choir room.

"Hi," she said greeting him with a quick peck on the lips. He looked around and noticed that she wasn't using her crutches anymore.

"Where are your crutches?" he said pulling some food out of the bag he had in his hand.

"I don't need them anymore. I still can't fully walk normally yet, but it seems like you're some sort of miracle worker." She winked at him.

"And how do you figure that?" he said sitting backwards on a chair.

"Well after I went out with you last night I suddenly don't need my crutches anymore, do the math," she grinned.

"Hmm, well it's nice to know I have so much of an impact on you." He pulled her face closer to his and he leaned his forehead against hers.

"So what's all this?" she said referring to the food he had set out for them.

"This is breakfast. I figured you would be here, so I brought you some orange juice and a cinnamon bun."

"Why thank you," she said sitting down to enjoy the breakfast he got for her. They sat there eating their breakfast in comfortable silence, exchanging smiles here and there. When Puck finished his cinnamon bun and orange juice, he disposed of his trash and said goodbye to Rachel.

"Where are you going?" she asked; still daintily eating her food.

"I have an early football practice. The big game's tomorrow." He didn't want to ask her to come because he didn't think it was appropriate. The truth was that he really wanted her there, but he wasn't even sure what they were. Were the just friends, were they dating, were they boyfriend and girlfriend? He was hoping it was the last one.

When Puck told her that the game was tomorrow, she felt some excitement in her stomach. She could finally go to a school football game and support her… _Wait, what are we? _She suddenly wasn't sure why she wanted to go, but she wished that he would ask her to. For all she knew, last night might have made him change his mind about her. _But he did bring me breakfast this morning. _She figured the only way she would know for sure was to ask him. So she sucked it up, took a deep breath and caught Puck just before he was about to leave.

"Hey, so, um, I don't want to sound pushy or anything, but where do we stand?" She felt like she could projectile vomit at any second. She'd get a terrible feeling in her gut if he said he just wanted to be friends. After the way they kissed last night, she couldn't go back to being just friends with him. It wouldn't work for her.

"Where do you want us to stand?"

_Figures; I'm the one getting stuck with the decision. I'll look like such a fool. _

"Well I know that I like hanging out with you. And I like being with you, I like kissing you, and I like you; a lot," she said truthfully.

"I feel the same way," he said touching her face.

"So does this mean?"

"That we're boyfriend and girlfriend, hell yes Berry!" She couldn't help but laugh. "So since you're my girlfriend, would you mind coming to your boyfriend's game tomorrow night?"

"I couldn't think of a better way to spend a Friday night." She was beaming. She was ecstatic that she finally had a boyfriend, and better yet a boyfriend that she actually cared so much about.

"Great babe; see you later!" He kissed her on the cheek and left the room. She turned around and continued practicing.

"Hey Rachel," said a boy coming into the room. When she turned around, she saw that it was Finn.

"Oh, hey Finn," she said casually. She didn't even mix up her words when she saw him anymore. Maybe she really was over Finn.

"So what was that about?" he asked awkwardly.

"Oh, that was," she wasn't sure how to explain it exactly; "we're dating now."

"Oh that's…cool." If she didn't know any better, she could have sworn that Finn was jealous. That wasn't fair. He couldn't be having a baby with Quinn and still expect Rachel to wait for him.

"Yeah, I'm actually really happy."

"That's good. Just be careful, okay?" he warned.

"Don't worry, he won't hurt me. I believe Noah; I trust him."

"Okay Rachel. Well it was nice talking to you, I guess I'll see you later?" he said leaving.

"Bye Finn." She didn't let what he just said bother her. She trusted Noah and even though he hurt her before, she knew he wouldn't do it again.

"Oh hey Puck!" Quinn sounded excited as she ran into Puck in the hallway.

"Hello Quinn, how are you doing?"

"I'm hanging in there, how about you?" she asked.

"I'm doing really well."

"So how'd your date go last night?" He looked at her like "how did you know?" "Kurt and Mercedes told me. They told the whole Glee club actually." Puck just rolled his eyes. It didn't bother him anymore that people knew. He actually preferred it. He had a hot girlfriend, why shouldn't he want to show her off?

"It went great actually. She's coming to the game tomorrow."

"That's…terrific," she tried to sound happy for him, but it came out sounding more like jealousy.

"Yeah, I'm really happy about it," he smiled.

"That's good, really great. I'm happy for you both." She touched his arm before walking away. _Did she just actually sound jealous? _She's not supposed to sound jealous, she's got Finn. She can't want to keep the baby with Finn and then expect Puck to wait around for her. It wasn't fair to him. He quickly shook any thoughts he had about Quinn out of his mind before running to the field for his early morning practice.


	17. Of course I want her here

Today was Friday, the day of the big game. The whole Glee club was going to support Finn, Puck, Matt, Mike, and Kurt. They figured with all the team's support, they might finally win another game. Right after school, Mercedes went over to Rachel's house to get decked out for the game.

"We're supposed to put it on our face?" Rachel asked Mercedes.

"Yes, Barbra," she said referring to Barbra Streisand, "you put the team colors on your face. Blue goes on the left and white goes on the right."

"Do you know anything about football?"

"I know as much about football as I do about any other sport. I know the basics, but that's about it," said Mercedes.

"Do you think you could explain it to me? I have never watched a single sport in my life, but I would like to offer Noah my support."

"I'll test you on the way there," cracked Mercedes. Just as they were finishing putting their outfits together, Rachel heard her doorbell ring.

"I'm coming," she yelled from her bedroom.

"Hey babe," said Puck greeting her at her door.

"Hey, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be getting ready for the game?" She was actually glad that he came to see her. She wanted to see if he liked her outfit.

"I do, I can't stay long, but I came to give you this." He handed her his worn in letterman jacket. On the back was his jersey number, 20, and his last name. It was the jacket that all the football players had and most of the cheerleaders wore. Rachel was probably the only non-cheerleader that would be wearing the jacket tonight. "I want you to wear it tonight." He helped her put the jacket on. Although it was a little too big on her, he thought it fit her perfectly. He had to admit that she looked hot. He skimmed over her outfit and noticed that she was wearing pink converse. "I see that you still haven't given up on the pink yet," he teased her.

"One step at a time," she joked.

"Well I've got to go, but I'll see you later tonight. By the way, you look beautiful." He kissed her hand and left. Rachel stood there for a minute after he left; still swooning. She brought Puck's jacket up to her nose and noticed that it smelled just like him on the night of their date. She loved that smell.

"Yo, Rachel!" called Mercedes from the top of the stairs. Rachel quickly spun around. "What are you doing?" Mercedes raised one eyebrow like she'd just caught her doing something."

"Um, nothing, Noah just came by to give me his jacket. He wants me to wear it to the game," she said uneasily.

"Oh Noah, I love you." Mercedes mocked the way Rachel was feeling.

"Shut up," she said lightly pushing her.

"And you smell so good too," Mercedes continued. Rachel laughed and they went back into Rachel's bedroom.

Puck was in the locker room getting ready for the game. There were about 10 minutes left until the school would see them play. He suddenly had a case of the nerves. He never felt nervous about the football games, but he had a pretty good guess as to why he suddenly felt this way. Rachel would be in the audience. His girlfriend would be watching him play and he wanted to impress her. This could be his chance to show her that he can actually do something right for a change. If they won, maybe he'd give her a reason to be proud of him again.

"So, how is everything?" Finn took a seat next to Puck on the locker-room bench.

"Fine and you?" He was surprised that Finn was even talking to him. Lately, they barely said two words to each other.

"I've just got a lot going on with Quinn and the baby." He seemed stressed.

"Is everything okay?" Puck started to worry. He hoped that nothing was wrong.

"No, everything's fine, I'm just so stressed out. Quinn's always yelling at me and I'm trying to get a job, but no one's hiring." Puck felt bad for Finn. It was his kid; he should be worrying about this, not Finn. _Maybe I should tell him. _Just as Puck was about to speak, Coach Tanaka summoned the boys.

"Alright guys, it's time for the game. Go out there and make me proud!" They all got into a huddle, said their chant, and went out onto the field.

"This is terrible," said Mercedes about an hour into the game.

"Why's that?" asked a clueless Rachel.

"Because McKinley only has 2 points and Fairview has 7," chimed Artie.

"Oh. I don't get this game," confessed Rachel.

"If this side of the stands is cheering, McKinley scored. If that side is cheering, Fairview scored. Can you at least follow that?" Artie asked.

"I think so."

The game did not start out good for Puck. Every time the ball was passed to him, he'd either fumble it or get tackled. He couldn't stop thinking about what Finn had told him in the locker-room. He was putting so much stress on his best friend when it wasn't even his responsibility. During half-time, Coach Tanaka gave them another one of his speeches.

"You have got to try harder than this. Don't you want to prove to everyone that you can win more than one game?" When he didn't get an answer from his team, he asked again. "Well don't you?"

"Yes sir," they all replied.

"Finn, you're doing a great job, but Puckerman, you have got to get your head in the game! Whatever is bothering you, you've got to let it go until the game is over!" It was hard to get his head in the game when he felt miserable for lying to his best friend and most importantly, his girlfriend. He decided he'd try his hardest to forget about Quinn and Finn and the baby drama and just focus on the game. Before they went back out on the field, Rachel stopped by the locker room.

"Excuse me Coach Tanaka, do you mind if I talk to Noah for a minute?" she asked.

"Make it quick," he led the rest of the team outside while Puck and Rachel talked.

"Are you okay? I know I don't know anything about this game, but I can tell something's bothering you. You just seem upset," she said worriedly.

"I'm fine," he said abruptly.

"Are you positive?"

"Yep, I gotta go now, see you later." While he was walking away, he felt bad about the way he talked to Rachel, but he couldn't tell her what was wrong without giving the secret away. He knew that would hurt her worse than anything.

After halftime, McKinley High started improving their game. Puck started making touch downs and things were going smoothly. McKinley only had one more touch down to go before they would win the game. With ten seconds on the clock, Finn spiraled the ball and Puck caught it. He ran it into the end zone, thus helping McKinley win their second game of the season. The Titans shared high fives as they celebrated. The crowd was just as excited. Rachel and her Glee club friends exchanged hugs. They all ran onto the field to celebrate with their friends. Rachel wasn't sure if Puck wanted her there after the exchange they had in the locker room, so she just decided to head home.

"Hey Puck, you coming to my house tonight to celebrate?" asked Artie.

"Yeah, I just have to find Rachel and we'll be there."

"Uh, Rachel went home," said Mercedes like it was obvious.

"What? Why would she do that?" Puck was bewildered. He thought that Rachel would be happy for him. He thought she'd want to celebrate with him.

"She said something about you not wanting her here." Mercedes was too busy celebrating with Kurt that she didn't pay attention to Puck. When Mercedes said that, he remembered the locker room incident.

"Of course I want her here." He didn't say it to anyone in particular; he was talking to himself. He got changed into his normal clothes and went to go find Rachel. He had to apologize to her. He didn't want her thinking that he didn't care about her, because the truth was that he cared about her more than anyone else.


	18. The Sleepover

As Puck anxiously awaited for Rachel to open her door, he was kicking himself internally. _How could I be so stupid? I shouldn't have talked to her that way. I just had a lot on my mind, but it wasn't fair to her. _His thought process was interrupted when he heard someone open the door.

"Oh, hi," she said walking towards the dining room.

"I thought you were going to come to Artie's to celebrate with us," he said sitting down on the dining room table.

"I didn't know you wanted me there." She tried to pretend like she didn't care but obviously she did.

"Of course I would want you there. Is this about the way I talked to you in the locker room? I'm sorry about that, but it wasn't about you." He got up and stood closer to her.

"Then what was it about?"

"I was just stressed out about the game and Coach was riding me about doing better and I just snapped. I'm sorry baby." He held out his hand and she put her hand into his.

"It's alright," she sighed.

"No it's not. I shouldn't have taken it out on you and I'm so sorry." He pulled her into a hug. He put his arms around her neck and she held onto his waist.

"So did you still want to go to Artie's party?" She was suddenly in a better mood.

"Do you want to?"

"Of course, let's go!" She linked her arm with his and they left Rachel's house. When they got to the party, everyone had already arrived. It was just the normal Glee crew, including Santana, Brittany, Mike and Matt.

"Hey you guys!" Everyone greeted Rachel and Puck as they walked through the door. They took their seat on the floor next to Kurt and Tina.

"H-h-hey Puck, g-g-great job at the game!" said Tina.

"Thanks!"

"So what do ya'all want to do?" asked Mercedes.

"Let's watch a movie, play games, practice for sectionals," were the responses she got.

"How about we just have fun?" Mercedes suggested. She got up and turned on Artie's stereo. Pretty soon, they were all up and dancing around. They even turned it into a competition. They would choose a partner and quickly make up a dance routine. The duo with the most votes would be the two who got to perform a duet at Sectionals. As always, Finn and Quinn were paired up, Santana and Brittany, Tina and Mike, Artie and Kurt, Mercedes and Matt, and Puck and Rachel rounded out the teams. Finn and Quinn wowed everybody with a unique version of "(I've Had) the Time of My Life" from Dirty Dancing. Santana and Brittany sang "Wannabe" by the Spice Girls and got everyone dancing along with them. Tina and Mike rocked out to "I Love Rock n' Roll." Artie and Kurt sang "It's My Life" by Bon Jovi and pulled their two favorite girls; Mercedes and Tina, up with them. Next was a rousing rendition of "Empire State of Mind" from Mercedes and Matt. Theirs definitely had the best (and loudest) vocals. But it was Puck and Rachel's version of "Accidentally in Love" by the Counting Crows that got the most votes. It was fun and had the most chemistry. Everyone agreed that it was their best chance for winning at sectionals. Once everyone had calmed down, they were all pretty worn out. Santana and Brittany didn't stay over, but everyone else did. Quinn fell asleep in Finn's lap, Mercedes and Tina were in the corner laughing and talking. Kurt was asleep on the couch. Artie was the only one actually watching the movie, which was Transformers. Puck was sitting on the floor and Rachel was sitting between his legs. Her head was leaning against his chest. When they thought nobody was looking, they would sneak little kisses here and there. Rachel locked her arms around Puck's neck and started turning around to get deeper into the kiss. Out of nowhere, they heard someone whistling. They both stopped kissing and turned around to find everyone staring at them. _I thought they were asleep, thought Rachel._ Rachel's face turned beet red. She hid her face in Puck's chest. He felt vibrations against his chest, which meant she was laughing. He lifted her chin up gave her a quick kiss on the lips. After a while, Rachel started yawning, so Puck lay down and she cuddled up next to him. She fell asleep with his arms around her waist.

When Rachel woke up in the morning, she felt around and noticed that Puck was gone. _Its 6:00 in the morning, I'm pretty sure Puck's never up this early. _She was worried that Puck might have left her. She was always worrying about that happening.Everyone else was still sleeping, so she quietly walked over all the sleeping bodies on the floor to get to the kitchen. Puck wasn't in there either.

Puck woke up early the next morning. He hadn't gotten much of a good night's sleep anyway. With Quinn and Finn just a short distance away, it was all he thought about. It wasn't that he had feelings for Quinn, he was in love with Rachel, but the guilt was eating him alive. At 6:00 he figured he'd go outside to get some fresh air since he wouldn't be able to go back to sleep anyway. Just a few minutes after he got outside, Rachel joined him.

"Good morning beautiful," he said kissing the top of her head.

"I was wondering where you were this morning," she said indifferently.

"Ah, I just had to get some fresh air, just got some stuff on my mind."

"Do you want to talk about it?" She looked up at him and saw pain in his eyes. She knew that something was hurting him, she just couldn't figure out what it was.

"Naw, I'm not going to stick my problems with you, baby. It's nothing anyway." He grabbed her waist and pulled her into a sideways hug.

"Well you know I'm here if you ever decide you want to. Can I tell you something?" Puck wasn't expecting her to say anything else, but he shook his head and waited for her to continue.

"When you first asked me out, I said yes because I thought it would make Finn jealous. I was so crazy about him." Puck's face fell a little. He should have known; he knew she liked him, so it shouldn't have came as much of a shock. "But after hanging out with you and really getting to know you better, I fell for you. You've made me feel really special and you've made me happier than I've been in a while. I know that sounds totally cheesy, but I just wanted to be honest with you. You've always been honest with me; even when I don't want to hear it sometimes, so I just wanted to tell you the truth. I understand if you…" She was cut short.

"I don't want to break up with you and I'm not mad," he said as if reading her thoughts, "I'm glad you told me." Yet again he was riddled with so much guilt. He had to tell Rachel, he couldn't keep the secret from her any longer. _She thinks that I'm being honest with her. I can't do this anymore; I have to tell her. _

"Hey Rach?" This was it; he was going to tell her.

"Hey guys, Artie just made breakfast if you're hungry," said Quinn sticking her head out the door.

"We'll be right there," said Rachel. She left him to his thoughts and went back inside.


	19. The Way You Make Me Feel

**A/N: Songs in this chapter: "The Way You Make Me Feel" by Michael Jackson. I tried to describe their dance moves similar to the way it is in the video; with the guy chasing the girl. Bold is Puck singing. Italics are Rachel. Oh and I totally took the seducible line from "A Walk To Remember," which is my FAVORITE movie:D**

Everyone gathered around the table to enjoy the banana pancakes that Artie and Tina made them.

"This is really good, thanks guys," said Finn.

"Yeah, thanks." Everybody else chimed in.

Underneath the table, Puck brushed his foot up and down on what he thought was Rachel's leg.

"Puck, I love you and all, but do you think you could stop touching my leg with your foot." Mercedes laughed so loud that she almost choked on her pancakes. Everyone else joined in with harmonious laughter. Even Puck laughed at himself.

While everyone else was helping Artie and Tina clean up in the kitchen, Puck walked over to Quinn, who was rolling up her sleeping bag.

"How are you?" That seemed to be the only question he ever asked her.

"Fine," she said not giving him much of an acknowledgement.

"And the baby?"

"She's fine."

"Quinn I wanted to talk to you about something." He knew she'd probably say no, but he had to at least try.

"No, you can't tell Rachel; not yet at least. I need some time, okay? I'm gonna tell Finn soon, but I just need some time. I don't want Rachel to know until I tell Finn, so just please, not yet." Quinn was actually begging him not to tell Rachel. She seemed genuinely concerned about what would happen, so Puck had to abide by her wishes.

"Okay, I won't, I promise. Oh here let me help you with that," he said bending down to help her fold up her sleeping bag.

"No, I'm fine, I got it."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes!" She grabbed her stuff and huffed away. "Finn, can you take me home?" A few minutes later, both Finn and Quinn said their goodbyes and went home.

"What were you and Quinn talking about?" Rachel asked Puck as Finn and Quinn left. "She seemed upset."

"Just pregnancy hormones." That was the best he could come up with.

"I couldn't imagine being pregnant at this age. Quinn's so brave; I could never have a baby this young. Could you imagine that?"

"Yeah, I know," was all he simply said. He actually knew what it was like to have a baby at this age. He was having a baby this young. But he wasn't allowed to tell Rachel that; not yet anyway.

After a few more Glee club members said their goodbyes, Rachel asked Puck to drive her to the dance studio. She wanted to get a head start on practicing for Sectionals; which was only weeks away. Puck told her he would see her later, but he decided to surprise her and stay. When he walked through the door, Rachel was already changed and was practicing a new routine. Her pink leotard and white tights hugged the curves on her tanned dancer's body perfectly. Puck had to restrain himself. He licked his lips and his heart was beating way faster than it should have. He could have watched her dance all day; after all, he was still a teenage boy. Normally if he saw a hot girl, he would easily be able to convince her of anything. With Rachel, he'd get tongue-tied and forget what he was trying to say.

Rachel couldn't wait to get into the dance studio. Even though it was a few days since she had been dancing, it felt like weeks. She was used to dancing everyday, so it felt a little weird actually taking a day off. She got into her outfit and started messing around with some moves. Her duet with Puck at sectionals had to be perfect, so she would spend every day perfecting it. She was so into her routine that she didn't even notice Puck was there until she heard him clap. When she saw him, her face lit up. She didn't think he'd want to watch her dance. She happily skipped over to his side.

"I didn't think you'd want to stay," she said cheerfully.

"I figured I might as well get a jump start on our training. Sectionals is only a few weeks away." It was like he was reading her mind.

"You want to practice?"

"Sure, why not? Besides, how could I pass up on the opportunity to see my hot girlfriend in a leotard?" He winked at her.

"Well aren't you charming." She playfully shoved him and they got to work on their duet. After debating about it for a while, they decided on Michael Jackson's "The Way You Make Me Feel." They felt that the dance and the song was a perfect fit.

They started off by Rachel strutting across the floor and Puck chasing after her.

**Hey pretty baby with the high heels on**

**You give me fever like **

**I've never, ever known**

**You're just a product of loveliness**

**I like the groove of your walk, **

**Your talk, your dress**

**I feel your fever from**

**Miles around **

**I'll pick you up in my car **

**And we'll paint the town**

**Just kiss me baby**

**And tell me twice**

**That you're the one for me**

Rachel turned around and put her hand on Puck's chest as if pushing him backwards.

**The way you make me feel **

_(The way you make me feel) _

**You really turn me on**

_(You really turn me on) _

**You knock me off of my feet**

_(You knock me off of my feet) _

**My lonely days are gone**

_(My lonely days are gone) _

Rachel stood in the middle of the floor as Puck circled around her.

**I like the feelin' you're givin' me **

**Just hold me baby and I'm **

**In ecstasy**

**Oh I'll be workin' from nine **

**To five**

**To buy you things to keep**

**You by my side**

**I never felt so in love before**

**Just promise baby, you'll love me**

**Forevermore**

**I swear I'm keepin' you satisfied **

'**Cause you're the one for me **

**The way you make me feel**

_(The way you make me feel) _

**You really turn me on**

_(You really turn me on) _

**You knock me off of my feet now **

**Baby **

_(You knock me off of my feet) _

**My lonely days are gone**

_(My lonely days are gone) _

"Can we take a break?" said an exhausted Puck.

"Sure thing," she said breathing heavily. They were both drowned in sweat. Rachel's hair was stuck to forehead. She had a light blush to her. They both grabbed a bottle of water and sat down on the hardwood floor.

"It's so hot in here," said Rachel fanning herself with her hand.

"Maybe that's just due to all of the sexual tension in here," he teased.

"Yeah, maybe," she said with a flirty smile.

"Why Rachel Berry, I didn't know you had a wild side. You're such a good girl," he playfully mocked her.

"Oh, I can be bad." She crinkled her nose and let out a slight giggle.

"Hmmm, well I did know this about you." She waggled her finger in a gesture that said "come here" and he crawled across the floor over to Rachel. He brushed her hair out of her face and touched his lips lightly to hers at first. Soon after, the kiss turned passionate. His hands were tangled into her hair and she stroked the strip of hair on his head. She leaned back until she was lying flat on the floor. In the middle of the kiss, she had to push him back.

"Are you trying to seduce me?" she joked.

"Why, are you seducible?" She flashed another of her flirty smiles that made Puck melt. "That's what I thought." He kissed her forehead and got up. "Well, let's get back to work, Berry. We've got a routine to practice." He pulled her up off the floor and they went back to perfecting their duet.


	20. It was hard not to say those three words

**A/N: Here's the next chapter. I worked hard on this one and hopefully you like it. It was actually a last minute idea; hopefully it paid off and wasn't all that awkward. You'll see what I'm talking about**

After their rendezvous at the dance studio, Rachel wanted Puck to come to her house. Her parents were away for the weekend and she said she had a surprise for him. He wasn't sure what it was, but he was sure whatever it was he would like it. Right after he left the dance studio, he went home and freshened up. He wanted to look nice for Rachel. He showered, picked out his best outfit, and even had some time to himself.

"Where are you going honey?" asked Kathleen as Puck came downstairs.

"I'm, uh, going over to Rachel's house." His mom gave him a look that meant "be careful with her." "I'm gonna treat her right Mom, I promise."

"Well where are you guys going? It's pouring rain out there."

"I don't know, she didn't tell me, but we'll be careful, promise."

"Noahie, how come I haven't met this Rochelle yet?" asked Stacy; skipping up to him.

"You mean Rachel? And you will, soon. I promise." He smiled at his sister and said goodbye to his family.

Rachel was bummed. She wanted to take Noah to the stream by her house for a picnic, but a last minute weather report called for a thunderstorm. She peeked out the window and saw rain droplets falling in the darkness. She didn't expect Noah to come over now. They haven't been on a real date since the winter fair, so she wanted this to be special. She was a little freaked about being alone during a thunderstorm ever since she was a little girl. _Stupid rain, you had to ruin everything. _Just then, she heard a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" she called from the house.

"It's me, open up." She noticed Puck's deep voice and quickly ran over to the door.

"What are you doing here? It's pouring out there, are you crazy?" When she opened the door, Puck was soaking wet. She let him in and went into the bathroom to get him a towel.

"You said you had a surprise. I wasn't going to miss out on that," he joked. Rachel sat on the arm of the couch. She rubbed the towel against his arms to warm him up. He held onto her waist so she wouldn't fall.

"Well you didn't have to come all the way over here, you nut." She playfully punched him in the arm. "It could have waited until tomorrow."

"Okay, so I wanted to see you, do I need an excuse?" he grinned at her. She thought it was the sweetest thing that he'd come over to see her even in the pouring rain.

"Well I lo, am glad you did." She was about to say "I love you for that," but they haven't said that yet. She didn't want to be the first one just in case he didn't feel the same. "I'm gonna go get you some of my dad's clothes. I don't want you getting sick." She quickly ran upstairs and pulled some plaid pajama pants and a grey t-shirt out from her fathers' drawers. She noticed some slippers and grabbed those too as she walked out the door. While she was upstairs, she decided to change into her pajamas. She put on her pink shorts, her blue tank top, and her pink slippers. She knew Puck would make fun of her pink theme again, but hey, she loved pink.

"So these might be a little too big for you, but I think you'd look cute in them." She laughed at herself when she realized what she'd just said.

"Thanks babe. Oh and you look cute yourself. I see the pink isn't cut out of your wardrobe just yet, huh?" He said walking into the bathroom to change.

"Baby steps, remember?" They wouldn't even have to say one word to each other and they could have the best time. That's what she loved so much about Noah. They just got each other so well.

"So?" he said stepping out to show her.

"I think you look handsome, as always," she said walking over to kiss him.

"Oh yeah?" he asked.

"Oh yeah, definitely," she said in between kisses. They stood there for a while in an embrace. They just loved each other's company. As they sat down against the couch, it suddenly got dark.

"Great, I think the power just went out," moaned Rachel. Even sitting there in Puck's arms, she couldn't help but be terrified. The dark freaked her out; thunderstorms scared her, with both combined, she was grateful she wasn't alone.

Puck could feel Rachel shaking a little in his arms. He could feel her tense up. He could sense her fear. It reminded him of the way his little sister acted during thunderstorms. He would always rub her back to calm her down. That was the only thing he thought he could do right now.

"Hey Rach, it's alright. I'm right here, okay?" He stroked her back and she leaned her head against his shoulder.

"Sorry, I just sort of freak out during thunderstorms," she said lamely.

"It's alright."

"You probably think I'm such a baby," she spoke softly.

"No, not at all," he said trying to calm her down. She reached up to kiss his lips. Soon they found themselves in the same position as the dance studio. Puck felt a hand gently brush up against his skin and it sent shivers down his spine.

Rachel was surprised at how intense the kiss became so quickly. It usually took them a while to deepen the kiss. She didn't mind it at all, but she wasn't sure what to do next. She put her hand on his back and lifted up his shirt. He knew where this was going and he had to force himself to stop it.

"What are you doing?" he asked in the nicest way possible. Rachel's face turned red with embarrassment; not that he'd be able to see her in the dark anyway. She wasn't sure what to say. She was completely mortified.

"I, um, I thought," she started to cry a little. Puck wouldn't have known if it wasn't for her frequent sniffling.

"It's okay; I just didn't want anything like this to happen because I didn't want you to think that I'm only into you for sex. You're too important to me and if you want to take it slow then I'll do that because you're worth it." That was the first time he'd ever said those words to a girl and he meant every single one of them.

"I feel like such an idiot," she said hiding her face.

"No, look at me." He lifted her chin up so that they were making eye contact. "I _never _want to make you feel like you're an idiot. That's not what I was trying to do. I just want you to know that you're more special to me than sex is." That came as a shock to her. She'd never seen this side of Puck even after a few months of dating. It only made her love him even more.

"What if it's what I want?" she said shyly. She knew they'd only been dating a few months. She wasn't sure how all of it happened so fast, but she knew what she felt, and she wouldn't let anyone tell her otherwise.

"I just don't want it to ruin what we have. What if we have sex and it makes you think of me differently? I can't afford to lose you." Although that was a major concern of his, he couldn't help but be wary of the whole pregnancy side of it. He already had one baby on the way; he couldn't afford another one.

"Do you want to be with me?" she asked seriously.

"Yes, you know I do."

"Well I want to be with you too so whatever happens shouldn't make us think differently of each other. I like you so much," It took everything in her not to say those three words; "I love you." "And I want to be with you." She never thought she'd actually have to force Noah to have sex; she never thought anyone would have to.

"I like you too; a lot Rachel." It took everything in him not to say "I love you." He bent down and pressed his lips against hers. She clasped his warm hand with hers. The coolness of his breath in her ear made her let out a tiny gasp. Being that close to someone, especially Noah, was a special moment for her. She was cautious with her heart when they first started dating, but she let herself fall in love with him and that was a good feeling. He put his hand on the small of her back; bringing her up to him. As he kissed her neck, she failed to stifle a whimper. He stopped kissing her to stare at her for a moment. He swallowed hard and pushed the hair out of her face. She put her hands around his neck and brought his lips back down to hers.


	21. I'll never fall in love again

**A/N: I know that in this chapter, that wasn't exactly what, happened. I'm just writing my own thing, so hopefully this is good. Oh and I don't really know what the competition is called so I hope that Lima's Show Choir Sectionals is alright haha. Thanks so much for all the positive reviews. I'm so happy you guys love the story!**

Rachel woke up the next morning in Puck's arms. That was the only place she felt so safe in. The rain had finally let up, but it was still drizzling lightly outside. She looked up at him and saw that he was still asleep. She stroked his cheek with the back of her hand.

"I love you," she gently whispered. She thought he wouldn't hear it, but he did. He smiled a little smile when he felt her head fall back into his arms. Little did Puck know that Rachel was doing the exact same thing. She'd heard him say something last night that made her heart burst with happiness.

Once Rachel had fallen asleep Puck planted a kiss on her forehead.

"I love you," he said softly so she wouldn't hear. He cuddled up closer to Rachel and fell back asleep. Rachel grinned from ear to ear. She suddenly had butterflies fluttering around in her stomach. She always wondered how it would feel when a guy had said those words to her and now that she knew, she didn't want that feeling to ever go away.

Puck woke up to the taste of Rachel's bubblegum lip gloss on his lips.

"Hey," he said stretching.

"Well good morning," she said waking him up with a kiss.

"You seem happy?" He said already knowing why. It was the same reason he was happy.

"Yeah well, life is good. How could I not be happy waking up to this?" she lightly poked his arm.

"Well I'm pretty happy myself," he said sitting up.

"Is that so?" she smirked.

"Definitely," he said kissing her forehead again.

"I'm gonna go get changed; meet you back down here for breakfast." She nuzzled her nose against his and then bounced up the stairs. Seeing Rachel that happy made him happy. He knew she was in love with him; he could feel it. He knew right there that he would tell her he loved her. He didn't want it to just come out of the blue, he wanted it to be a special moment. That's when he had an idea. He would do it after sectionals. That's when he came up with a plan. He'd take her to Burgundy's restaurant the night of sectionals and disguise it as a celebration for their win. Even if they lost (which he doubted) Rachel could use some cheering up. He'd give her the ring that his grandmother told him to hold onto and he'd tell her that he loves her. _That's perfect, he thought._ He quickly hid the smile that was forming on his face when Rachel came back downstairs. He didn't want her to know about the plan until it happened. She pulled him up off the floor and they went into the kitchen.

Monday at school everything was going good. It was the day of sectionals and everyone was happy and excited. Everyone except Quinn and Finn (they weren't there which Rachel thought was weird since they never missed a practice), but she was sure they'd show up soon. They'd never let their team down.

"Hey girl," Mercedes walked over to Rachel who was sitting on the risers in the choir room. "How was your weekend?"

"It was," she started, "good."

"What's with the goofy smile on your face?" Kurt walked over to join them.

"Nothing, I just had a really good weekend." She tried her hardest to not to smile, but she couldn't help it. It was as if her face was frozen in that expression.

"Someone's in love," Mercedes sing-songed.

"What, pfft no I'm not," Rachel denied.

"Whatever girl, I know that look; you're glowing and everything."

"It's true," chimed in Kurt. Rachel just rolled her eyes at them. But they were right, she was in love with Noah Puckerman and she couldn't have been happier.

The bus ride to sectionals was a very cheery atmosphere. Everyone sang songs and was in a very good mood. They were a little worried that neither Finn or Quinn still weren't there, but they figured they were just running a little late. Since Mr. Schuster had some personal problems, he was disqualified from sectionals, which meant that Ms. Pillsbury would be their chaperone. No one minded since they all loved Ms. Pillsbury.

"Okay guys, we're all signed in. Why don't you go take your seats and I'll meet you there in a minute," said Ms. Pillsbury. Rachel took her seat next to Puck in the auditorium. He put his arm around her shoulder and they waited as the Jane Adams Girls Reform School took the stage.

"What happens if they don't show up? We can't perform with only 10 kids?" Ms. Pillsbury was pacing back and forth as she talked to Mr. Schuster outside.

"Emma, they'll show up. Finn and Quinn know how important this is to their teammates; it's important to them too, just keep the kids calm." As Ms. Pillsbury walked into the auditorium, she noticed a familiar tune.

_And you and you and you, _

_You're gonna love me_

"The Jane Adams girls are singing 'And I'm Telling You,'" she said freaking out.

"Okay, Em, calm down. It's just a coincidence," he said calmly.

"Yeah, you're probably right." She relaxed a little more now. Next, it was time for the Harverbrook School for the deaf. As if it wasn't bad enough, they sung New Directions closing song.

_Don't stop believing_

_Hold on to that feeling _

_Street lights, people _

"This is terrible! Meeting in the green room; 5 minutes," said Rachel storming out of the auditorium. A few minutes later, New Directions was in the green room discussing their situation.

"How did they find out what songs we were singing? Did someone give Sue the set list?" asked Rachel pacing around the room.

"Obviously it was Santana or Brittany," said Kurt rubbing his temples.

"I didn't get Sue the set list. I don't care what you think nobody's forcing me to be here. If you ever tell anybody this, I'll deny it, but I like Glee. It's the best part of my day alright, and I'm not going to mess that up. Did you give Sue the set list Brit?" Santana asked Brittany.

"Well, I did, but I didn't know what she was going to do with it," Brittany said sheepishly.

"Puck, Rachel, do you guys have any other duets that you could do?" asked Ms. Pillsbury.

"I won't be able to come up with something that quick," said a disappointed Puck. "Rachel's going to have to do her solo.

"But we were supposed to do our duet," she said walking towards Puck.

"Nothing's working out right. We have to come up with all new routines in less than an hour and our last two members aren't even here," cried Rachel. Just then Finn walked in followed by Quinn. They both walked in looking sad and they automatically went to opposite corners of the room.

"Glad you could make it," said Ms. Pillsbury.

"What's going on?" asked Finn.

"S-S-Sue gave the other schools our s-s-set list, so n-n-now we have no routines," stuttered Tina.

"And Noah and I were supposed to do our duet, but that's not happening either." When Rachel said Puck's name she noticed the look Finn gave him. She wondered what was making him act so strange. She didn't have time to think about that though; they needed 3 new routines and fast.

"What about No Air?" suggested Finn, "We could pull that together in no time."

"That could work!" said an excited Rachel. She pulled Finn over to the side and they got to work on the duet. Puck was the opposite of excited. He didn't like the idea of Finn being the one to save the day. That might make Rachel fall in love with him again and that was the last thing Puck wanted.

"We could do true colors too," Artie suggested.

"Great, now we just need one more song," spoke Ms. Pillsbury.

"I found some sheet music online and made copies on the Cheerios copier, then I trashed the thing. Santana, Mike, Matt, Brittany, you guys are our best dancers. Maybe you could come up with something quickly?" _He just has one great idea after another, Puck thought to himself. _So while Finn and Rachel were onstage, the two cheerios and football players came up with a routine. They got it done with pretty quickly and taught it to everyone backstage. While the rest of the Glee club was watching Finn and Rachel onstage, Puck decided to see what was wrong with Quinn.

"Are you okay? Things seem weird between you and Finn."

"Yeah, that's because I told him." Puck was just about to ask "told him what?" until it sunk in. She finally told him the truth. That meant that he could tell Rachel. That made him happy and freaked out all at the same time.

"I'm guessing he didn't take it well," Puck reiterated.

"Obviously not," said Quinn snidely.

"How did it happen?"

"We were having dinner with my parents. Finn decided to tell them that we're having a baby; well he sung it to them actually." Puck looked at her in confusion. "in the form of the song 'You're Having My Baby.' My parents kicked me out, so I spent the night at Finn's house. In the morning he told me how much he loved me and that he was going to do everything he could to be a good father and boyfriend. So then, he proposed." Puck's eyes grew wide with shock. "Yeah, so I told him. I couldn't let him marry me thinking it was his kid. I couldn't do it anymore. He blew up at me and we broke up. So congrats, at least now you get to tell Rachel," Quinn said annoyed.

"I'm sorry Quinn," Puck said in a comforting tone.

"I bet you are." With that, she huffed away.

_What the hell did I do now? I try to be supportive and she yells at me. I don't know what to do anymore. Whatever, at least now I can tell Rachel. _As much as Puck wanted to perform today, he couldn't wait until sectionals were over so he could finally tell Rachel about how much he loved her and about Quinn & the baby.

Once they were finished with their performance, Finn and Rachel walked offstage. Before they got backstage where their teammates were, Finn pulled Rachel aside.

"I just wanted to let you know that your boyfriend's not who you think he is." It seemed that Finn turned off his happiness and was suddenly upset.

"What are you talking about?" Rachel was confused by Finn's statement.

"Puck's the father of Quinn's baby."

"What, no, you must have heard wrong. If that was true, Noah would have told me."

"Quinn told me this morning," said a hurt Finn. Rachel saw pain in his eyes. He wouldn't be this upset about something that wasn't true.

"No, I can't, I don't…" Finn stopped her short.

"Look Rachel, I wouldn't lie to you, alright? I just don't want to see you get hurt." It was too late. She was already hurt. She didn't know what else to say. She hid her head in her hands and remained like that for a few minutes before walking back to the greenroom with Finn.

"That was great guys!" said Ms. Pillsbury. Rachel quickly wiped the tear that fell from her eyes to receive their accolades.

"Thank you," they both said dimly.

"Alright everyone, true colors is next. Go get set up on stage. Good luck!" Ms. Pillsbury went to take her seat in the auditorium. Before they went onstage Puck noticed how Rachel was. She seemed a little distant towards him. _I'm sure it's nothing; she's probably just freaking out about the performances. Yeah, that's it, he assured himself. _

They went onstage and blew the crowd away with their rendition of 'True Colors.' Tina sang lead and instead of a big dance number they all sat on stools. It was an acoustic stripped down version of the song, and the crowd loved it. No later than 10 minutes after they got offstage, they had to change and get back onstage for 'You Can't Always Get What You Want.' As expected, the crowd loved that too. They got everyone up and dancing and singing along with them. Clearly, they were the fan favorite to win. But were they the judges' favorite? They took an hour lunch break and then they'd find out who won. New Directions gathered in the greenroom again and they ate their brown bag lunches. Puck noticed that neither Rachel nor Finn was with them. He went to go find them.

"Are you sure?" asked a disappointed Rachel.

"Why would Quinn lie about it? She wouldn't go through all that trouble if it wasn't true." Finn seemed to be calmer now.

"I can't believe this. Why didn't he tell me? He should have just told me." She wasn't just hurt; she was disappointed, angry, and sad. She felt a pang in her heart, but it wasn't the good kind. A whole mix of emotions was running through her. She had let her guard down and allowed herself to fall in love with him. She allowed herself to lose her virginity to him; which only made her angrier. _I was right about him all along; I shouldn't have trusted him. He didn't want me, he didn't care about me, I was probably just a consolation prize to him. He pretended to make me feel special, he said all the right things, I just can't believe I let myself be fooled by him. _Another tear trickled down Rachel's face and this time Finn saw it.

"Don't cry. I know how you feel, but he's not worth your tears. If he's willing to lie to you, then he obviously doesn't deserve you." Finn ran his thumb along Rachel's cheek to dry her tears.

"Thanks Finn," she said sniffling.

Puck looked all over, but couldn't seem to find Rachel or Finn anywhere. He knew it wasn't good that they would be alone together. Finn could tell Rachel before he got the chance to and then he'd be screwed. He walked into the auditorium to find Finn and Rachel sitting on the stage; kissing. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. So that's why Rachel was acting weird. It wasn't because she was upset about him having a baby with Quinn, it was because she was still in love with Finn. _I should've known better than to open up my heart to someone. I shouldn't have fallen in love with her; I knew something like this was going to happen. _He left the auditorium making sure to be quiet. He didn't want Rachel to know he'd been there; that he saw them kissing. He wanted her to tell him herself. She couldn't be mad at him for keeping a secret, when she did the exact same thing.

"I'm sorry," said Finn, "that wasn't supposed to happen."

"It's okay. I wish I could say I felt something just then, but I didn't. I'd always imagined what it would be like when I kissed you. The first two times gave me such a good feeling, but when you kissed me this time…"

"Nothing," said Finn finishing her sentence. Rachel just shook her head yes.

"I know. Is it so terrible if I say that I'm still in love with Quinn and I want to be with her?" He asked knowing what she'd say.

"No, if it's not so terrible that I feel the same way about Noah."

"You really love him don't you?"

"So much," Rachel finally admitted.

New Directions piled back into the auditorium an hour later, with Rachel and Puck sitting on opposite sides as well as Finn and Quinn.

"Every single one of our Glee clubs were great, but only one of you can win," said the announcer. "Let's get to it then. The winner of Lima's Show Choir Sectionals is…" Everyone in New Directions was holding hands with the person sitting next to them. "McKinley High's New Directions." It took them a few minutes to process what just happened before they all started jumping up and down and hugging each other. They ran to the stage to accept their trophy.

As soon as sectionals was over, Puck went straight home and didn't even bother to say a word to his mother or Stacy.

"Noah, are you okay?" asked his mom.

"Not right now mom, I just want to be alone." He actually had tears in his eyes. He quickly wiped them away. He didn't want anyone to know he'd just been crying; especially over Rachel Berry. He couldn't believe he was being such a baby about this. He was actually crying over a broken heart. _Love sucks._ And to think, he was going to give Rachel his grandmother's ring. If the whole day didn't get screwed up, he'd be at dinner with her right now telling her how much he loved her and she'd hopefully say the same. He made a pact with himself. _I'll never fall in love again. _

"What's wrong Rach?" asked Bill as Rachel made her way through the door.

"You won, you should be happy!" Tim and Bill tried to cheer their daughter up, but nothing was working.

"It's about a boy isn't it? Is it that Finn boy or Puckerman?" They were pretty sure it was Noah, but with teenage girls you just never know. Rachel still gave them no reply. As they all sat there in silence, Rachel started crying. It wasn't just a few tears either. It came out of her like a waterfall. Once it started, she couldn't stop it.

"I loved him Daddy," were the only words she uttered.

"It's alright sweetie." Her dads comforted her.

_I'll never fall in love again, she thought._


	22. I have nowhere to stay

Seeing Noah at school the following day felt like daggers being dug into Rachel's heart. For every time she saw him, another dagger was thrust into her heart. _You've got to get over him Rachel, he doesn't care about you. If he did he wouldn't have lied to you. Forget him. _

Puck did everything he could to avoid Rachel. He couldn't see her because every time he did it only made him want to cry. He wasn't ready to see her yet; he needed time.

"You have to talk to him." Mercedes came over to sit by Rachel in the lunchroom. Rachel was grateful that she and Mercedes were getting along well lately. It was almost like they were friends.

"I can't," was all she said while poking at her food.

"Why not?" Mercedes knew Rachel needed a friend and she was the closest thing to a friend that Rachel had.

"I, well, I just can't okay?" Rachel felt tears starting to form again so she tried her hardest to hold them back.

"Okay. I'm not going to argue with you, but I think it would at least make you feel better if you had some sort of closure, just saying." Mercedes walked away and let those words sink in. Rachel tossed her plastic spoon onto her tray and laid her head down on the table. _This is so frustrating. _"Oh, and Mr. Schu wants us to meet in the choir room at 3:00 today."

"But Glee rehearsal isn't until Thursday."

"Yeah, but he wants to talk to us about Sectionals."

So at 3:00 Rachel went to room 118. When she got there, no one was there. She heard the door close behind her. She turned around and saw Puck's face. She immediately knew what was going on.

Puck walked to his truck after school.

"Hey Puck!" He turned around to see who was calling his name. It was Kurt.

"Sorry, I'm not really in the mood to talk," he said starting up his truck.

"Mr. Schu wants to see you in the choir room." Kurt said regaining his breath.

"For what?"

"Um, he said he wanted to talk to you about sectionals."

Puck wondered what Mr. Schu wanted from him since they weren't rehearsing until Thursday but he went anyway. When he walked into the choir room, he saw Rachel standing there. He instantly felt like he wanted to cry but he kept his cool.

"Mercedes! Kurt!" they both said at the same time.

"Sorry, but you guys have to talk about it. We'll let you out when you finish talking," said Mercedes peeking her head through the door.

"Right!" agreed Kurt.

Puck and Rachel stood there in total silence at first. After about 5 minutes they knew one of them had to talk.

"Why didn't you just tell me?" Rachel's voice squeaked. _I guess I'm not as strong as I thought I was. _

"I wanted to tell you but…" Rachel stopped him short.

"But what?"

"But Quinn didn't want me too. She didn't want anyone to know until she told Finn."

"You've had a whole week to tell me. You could have told me even after the truth came out Noah." 

"You already knew."

"That's not the point! You should have been honest with me. I don't know if I can trust you anymore."

"Yeah well I could say the same about you," Puck said. He started heating up now. He was calm at first, but he knew how he gets when he's angry.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Rachel wasn't going to get blamed for this. He was the one that wasn't honest with her.

"I saw you and Finn in the auditorium."

"That meant nothing! We were both upset and it was in the moment," she tried to explain.

"You know what I think is funny?"

"What's that?" Rachel was aggravated already. Any second now she would walk out that door.

"I find it funny how you're pissed at me for not telling you the truth about me and Quinn when we weren't even dating at the time Quinn and I had sex. But you go and kiss Finn and I'm just supposed to accept it because "it happened in the moment." If I kissed Quinn "because we were both upset" would you accept that? I doubt it." That was it. That was the Puck that everybody knew.

"I can't believe you're turning this on me."

"I didn't say I was, I just said I found it funny how it's not okay for me to do one thing, but when you do something similar its okay." He was angry with her. He knew he probably shouldn't have said those things, but at the moment, he really didn't care.

"I can't do this anymore. We're over Puck. Please don't call me, don't text me, don't talk to me at all." Those were probably the hardest words Rachel ever had to say, but she had to do it for herself. As soon as Rachel heard the door click, she ran out with tears streaming down her face. She seemed to be crying a lot lately, but she didn't really have any control over it. Once Rachel left, Puck was so angry that he punched the wall.

As Rachel walked home that evening, she thought; a lot, and cried; a lot. She couldn't believe that he would lie to her and then blame her for what happened. _I know kissing Finn was wrong, but I don't want to be with him. I don't feel even close to the way I feel when I'm with Noah. _When Rachel walked past the park she noticed a vaguely familiar blonde sitting on the bench. She walked up to the girl and saw that it was Quinn.

"What's wrong?" she asked the crying blonde.

"Everything."

"What happened?"

"I have nowhere to go," said an embarrassed Quinn.

"Why not?" Rachel never thought she'd be comforting Quinn; especially after what just happened, but she knew how Quinn was feeling; alone.

"Finn's mom kicked me out. She found out it wasn't his baby and she wants him to have nothing to do with me now."

"And he's okay with that?"

"What is he supposed to do? I screwed everything up. Now I have nowhere to live, I have no friends, I lost Finn, and I'm having a baby," Quinn continued to cry. Rachel got up. She turned around and saw that Quinn was still sitting down.

"Aren't you coming?" she asked.

"Where am I gonna go?"

"Just come with me." Quinn objected at first but followed Rachel. When they came to a stop she realized that they were at Rachel's house.

"No, I can't," Quinn argued.

"Yes you can. You said you have nowhere else to go right?"

"But what are your parents gonna say? I'm sure they don't want you bringing some pregnant girl home," Quinn spoke shyly.

"My dads don't judge, and you're not just some pregnant girl, you're my friend Quinn." Quinn was shocked that Rachel just called her a friend. Rachel was just as shocked. But Quinn didn't mind; she needed friends.

"You can sleep right here," said Rachel putting Quinn's bags on her bed.

"Where are you going to sleep?"

"I've got a sleeping bag." Rachel pulled her sleeping bag out of her closet.

"I don't want to take your bed." Quinn started to get up off Rachel's bed but she stopped her.

"I insist." She smiled at Quinn and Quinn smiled back. Even after everything that happened, Rachel was still willing to help Quinn out. She was more thankful for that than she could ever explain to Rachel.

Everyday that Rachel and Quinn spent together was another day they got closer. They were becoming pretty good friends. They'd talk about everything other teenage girls would talk about but when it came to the subject of boys, they completely avoided it. They thought it was just a little weird to talk to each other about their ex-boyfriends considering they had both been with the same two guys.

"Where are you going?" asked Rachel one day after school.

"Oh, I'm gonna go take a walk, I just need some air." The truth was that she was going to see Puck. She didn't want Rachel to know because it was nothing. She just wanted to apologize to him for everything that happened. She didn't want Rachel to think it was anything more than that. Quinn anxiously knocked on the door to Puck's house. She had no idea what she was going to say to him when he opened the door. She'd rehearsed it and rehearsed it in her mind, but nothing ever comes out quite like you plan it.

"Hey," she said as he opened the door.

"Hey."

"I just came by to apologize. I'm sorry for everything that happened because of me. I'm sorry that you lost Rachel, I'm sorry that you lost your best friend, I'm just really sorry," she said honestly.

"This isn't your fault. I should have just told her and then this mess wouldn't have happened in the first place."

"I was the one who wanted you to wait. I didn't want you to tell her," Quinn said guiltily.

"But I could have fought it. I could have told you that its my kid too and I should get a say in who knows, but I didn't. Everything that happened with Rachel was my fault, it has nothing to do with you." Quinn started to feel a little light-headed. "Are you okay?" Puck asked. "You don't look so good."

"Yeah, I'm fine, I just…"

"Here, want to come in?" he asked grabbing her hand.

"No, I'm fine, I'm fine."

"Quinn, Quinn!" She collapsed in his arms. He wasn't sure what to do. He carried Quinn over to the couch and called 911.


	23. One way or the other

Quinn woke up to find herself in a hospital bed. She looked to her right and saw that Puck was asleep in a chair. She wondered what he was doing there so she woke him up.

"Hey, wake up," she whispered. Puck rubbed his eyes and stifled a yawn. "Why did you stay with me?"

"I didn't want to leave you alone," he said matter-of-factly.

"Really? Thank you Puck, you have no idea how much that means to me," she said weakly. He nodded his head and looked down. She wondered why he was so upset. _Well of course, it's Rachel. That was a stupid question, she thought._

"Quinn, I have something to tell you," he said in a whisper.

"What is it? Is everything okay?" she asked in a panic.

"It's about the baby."

"How is she?" She didn't get a response so she asked again. "Puck how is she?" She still received no answer. "No, please tell me everything's fine, you have to tell me everything's fine!" She started freaking out. She was overcome with grief. At first the thought of having this baby scared her and she wished it wouldn't have happened, but now that she had a miscarriage, her heart ached. She would have done anything to bring her back.

"I'm sorry Quinn," was the only thing he said. All Quinn could do would cry. It was the only thing she could do. She knew it wasn't going to bring her baby back, and that made her upset. Puck looked at the mother of what would have been his child and felt the exact same way she did. He secretly had wished that the baby was Finn's so he wouldn't have to deal with it, but now that his daughter had died, it hurt him. He walked over to Quinn and they shared an embrace. They sat there in awkward silence for a while until someone walked through the door.

"What are you doing here?" asked a hopeful Quinn.

"Puck called me. He told me what happened." Finn walked over to where Quinn and Puck were sitting.

"I'm gonna let you guys talk." Puck prodded out of Quinn's hospital room and patiently waited outside in the waiting area. About 20 minutes later, Finn came to get Puck.

"I'm sorry for your loss," Finn genuinely said to Puck.

"Thank you," Puck said standing up.

Finn held out his hand to offer Puck a handshake and Puck accepted. They soon found themselves hugging.

"I'm sorry for everything that happened with you and Quinn."

"It's alright, we're back together now. I talked to her and told her how much I missed being with her. At first she thought I was lying and that I just felt sorry for her, but I explained to her what I explained to Rachel…" Finn continued to talk. After "Rachel," everything else went sort of blurry for Puck. Hearing that name again sent a wave of emotions through him. He hated that she had such a hold on him. "So I'm gonna go over to Rachel's and get Quinn's stuff," Finn continued.

"What is Quinn's stuff doing at Rachel's?" asked a bewildered Puck.

"She was staying there. Rachel ran into Quinn in the park and after she told her how she didn't have anywhere to go, Rachel took her in. After the whole sectionals incident my mom told Quinn she couldn't live with us anymore but I talked to her. She said Quinn can come back." Hearing what Rachel did, even after she knew about everything, made Puck fall in love with her all over again. Too bad she was in love with Finn.

"Well, that's good." Puck couldn't think of anything else to say.

"You need to talk to Rachel," Finn said out of the blue.

"Why? It's not going to make a difference. I screwed up like always and I lost her. She's in love with you again." Puck wasn't attacking Finn. For once, he was opening up to him and being honest. Even in all of the years that Finn and Puck were friends, this was the first time he'd ever told Finn anything that personal.

"She's not in love with me," said Finn shaking his head. "She loves you; she wants to be with you."

"How do you know?" Puck was still keeping his guard up just in case. He didn't want to start getting hope if Finn turned out to be wrong.

"She told me. Plus, everyone can see it. She looks at you like you look at her. You love each other, but you're both just too stubborn to say it. You guys have been through a lot of stuff in your lives and you're both afraid if you open up your heart to someone that you'll get hurt, which is what happened. But that was because you were both starting to feel something you never felt before and it scared you so you put that guard up again." He was right. Everything that Finn mentioned was right. He did love Rachel, he was in love with Rachel, but he got scared that she wouldn't feel the same way, so he tried to deny those feelings. He couldn't do that anymore. He needed Rachel and that was that. He _wanted _her.

"You're right," said Puck, "but its not going to make that much of a difference now. We're over, she doesn't want anything to do with me." Puck slumped back into the waiting room chair.

"You have to fight for her. Did you let what she said to you last time make you give up?" Finn answered his own question. "No, so you can't let this tear you guys apart. You have to show her that she means more to you and that you're willing to do anything it takes to get her back. That's what you want, right?" said Finn joining Puck in the chair closest to him.

"Of course I do."

"Well then tell her everything that you're feeling, even if it's bad because chances are she's feeling the exact same way." Finn put his hand on Puck's shoulder and gave his best friend a pat on the back.

"I didn't know you were so philosophical," joked Puck.

"Oh I can be deep," mocked Finn. "No, I just know from experience. I've been there with Quinn and we don't always get along now, but we love each other and that's enough to make us want to try to work things out." Puck gave his best friend another hug before running off. He had a lot of work to do. It wasn't going to be easy, but he was going to get his girl back one way or the other.


	24. I love you

**A/N: Songs in this chapter "When You're Gone" by Avril Lavigne, "Two is better than one" by Boys Like Girls & Taylor Swift and "What You Mean to Me" from the Starstruck soundtrack. I cannot thank you ENOUGH for your kind words on my story. This is the second to last chapter though. **** I'm sad that the story's already over, but I will be writing another fanfiction immediately after I finish this one. It will be a Quinn/Puck/Finn centric, so keep your eyes out**

Saturday Rachel went to the dance studio. It was the only place that allowed her to be alone and she liked that. She tried focusing on the dance steps, but she found herself fumbling every step because her mind was on something else; Noah. H was all she'd been thinking about ever since they broke up. She was regretting breaking up with him, but then she told herself it was for the best. _You could never be happy with someone like him; he'd only end up hurting you even more in the long run. But I need him? No you don't Rachel, you don't need him. _She was arguing with herself internally. _This boy really has a hold on me. I only wish I could forget him, but every time I try to forget him, my mind only makes me think about him more. _She decided to take a break from dancing as inspiration for a new song hit her. Songs had been coming to her so fast lately; she had the material for it.

_I always needed time on my own_

_I never thought I'd need you there when I cry_

_And the days feel like years when I'm alone _

_And the bed where you lie is made up on your side_

_When you walk away I count the steps that you take_

_Do you see how much I need you right now? _

_When you're gone _

_The pieces of my heart are missing you _

_When you're gone_

_The face I came to know is missing too _

_When you're gone _

_The words I need to hear to always get me through the day_

_The day and make it ok_

_I miss you _

_I've never felt this way before _

_Everything that I do reminds me of you_

_And the clothes you left, they lie on the floor_

_And they smell just like you, I love the things that you do_

_When you walk away I count the steps that you take _

_Do you see how much I need you right now? _

_When you're gone_

_The pieces of my heart are missing you_

_When you're gone _

_The face I came to know is missing too_

_And when you're gone _

_The words I need to hear to always get me through _

_The day and make it ok_

_I miss you _

_We were made for each other_

_Out here forever_

_I know we were, yeah _

_And all I ever wanted was for you to know_

_Everything I'd do, I give my heart and soul_

_I can hardly breathe I need to feel you here with me, yeah_

_When you're gone _

_The pieces of my heart are missing you _

_And when you're gone_

_The face I came to know is missing too _

_And when you're gone_

_All the words I need to hear will always get me through_

_The day and make it ok_

_I miss you._

After she finished writing the song, she took a long deep sigh. Last time she sung about Noah, she was ready to give her heart away to him. They were going out on their first date and it was a much happier time. Now, well, it wasn't so happy. A single tear fell to the hardwood floor but before she had time to cry she heard a knock on the door.

"Um, come in," she said wiping her eyes.

"That was about Puck, wasn't it?" Quinn asked already knowing the answer.

"I heard what happened. I'm so sorry about you baby," Rachel changed the subject.

"Maybe it was God's plan. Maybe he took Jocelyn away from us because he wanted her up there with him. Puck and I weren't ready to be parents and as much as it hurts us, I guess it was for the best. She won't have to live a bad life with two parents who weren't ready for her," said Quinn in a somber tone. Rachel smiled a little. She would never have been able to see the positive in a situation like that had it happened to her. Quinn was probably the strongest girl she'd ever known and she really admired that quality in her. "Now back to your song. It was about Puck wasn't it," said Quinn in a happier tone. Rachel didn't have to answer for Quinn to know.

"You need to give him another chance; for yourself. As much as you don't want to admit it, I know you're in love with him, heck, the whole Glee club knows it. We also know that he's in love with you too, and you need to give him a break."

"Why should I?"

"Because you know it's the right thing to do. And you always do the right thing, Rachel. I know Puck is arrogant and sometimes irresponsible and isn't the best at opening up with people, but you're the only one whose helped him see that he actually has good qualities. He's always seen himself as a bad guy, so that's the façade he's put on. But you, you made him see that he can be romantic and sweet and funny and talented, and he appreciates that. He's never been in love either, so it's a new experience for both of you. And it's one that you guys should experience together." Quinn pinpointed it perfectly. Everything she'd said about Rachel and Puck was right. Rachel was in love with Puck, but he'd never take her back now, not after what happened between her and Finn in the auditorium.

"But, I kissed Finn." Rachel bowed her head to avoid Quinn's eyes. They were just becoming friends and Rachel ruined any chance of their friendship ever blossoming.

"I know. Finn told me," said Quinn nonchalantly.

"Why are you helping me out then? I never would have been treated a girl so nicely had she kissed my boyfriend."

"Finn and I weren't together when you guys kissed. Besides, I know you have no feelings for him. It happened in the moment and I can understand it. Puck does too y'know, he is just way too stubborn to admit it, which is something you guys have in common." Quinn lightly elbowed Rachel.

"Yeah, I do have a tendency to be a bit stubborn," admitted Rachel.

"I really think you should give him another chance, Rachel. I know he's disappointed you and he's hurt you, but like I said before, this is the first time he's actually ever cared this much about a girl before and it freaks him out a bit." Quinn gave Rachel a quick hug and said goodbye to her newfound friend as she left the dance studio. Rachel couldn't believe how accurate everything Quinn said was. _Does everybody really think we're that good together? _Rachel gathered her things and left the studio with a goal in mind. She was going to win Puck back if it was the last thing she did.

As soon as she got home, she immediately got to work on a song. Writing songs seemed to be their special way of communicating. She could say way more with her writing than she could say to his face. Every song she wrote didn't seem good enough, so she crumpled up each piece of paper and started over. By the time she finally wrote a song that wasn't all that crappy, her floor was covered in white balls of paper. She laid back on her bed with her hands behind her head. All she had to do was give it to him now; which would be the hard part. As she finished up, she heard a noise outside her window. She got up to see what it was. She looked down and saw Noah standing outside on her lawn with his guitar.

_Can't blame you, for thinking_

_That you never really knew me at all _

_I tried to, deny you_

_But nothing ever made me feel so wrong_

_I thought I was protecting you _

_From everything that I go through _

_But I know that we got lost along the way _

_Here I am, with all my heart _

_I hope you understand_

_I know I let you down_

_But I'm never gonna make _

_That mistake again_

_You brought me closer_

_To who I really am_

_Come take my hand_

_I want the world to see _

_What you mean to me _

_What you mean to me_

_Just know that, I'm sorry _

_I never wanted to make you feel so small_

_A story is, just beginning _

_We'll let the truth break down these walls _

_And every time I think of you_

_I think of how you pushed me through _

_And showed me how much better I could be_

_Here I am, with all my heart_

_I hope you understand_

_I know I let you down _

_But I'm never gonna make _

_That mistake again_

_You brought me closer_

_To who I really am _

_Come take my hand _

_I want the world to see_

_What you mean to me _

_You make me feel like I'm myself _

_Instead of being someone else_

_I wanna live that everyday_

_You say what no one else will say _

_You know exactly how to get to me_

_You know it's what I need_

_It's what I need _

_Here I am, with all my heart _

_I hope you understand_

_I know I let you down_

_But I'm never gonna make _

_That mistake again_

_You brought me closer _

_To who I really am_

_So, come take my hand _

_I want the world to see _

_What you mean to me_

_What you mean to me_

Rachel couldn't have run down those stairs any faster than she did. Once she got downstairs, she maintained her cool.

"Noah, what do you want?" She tried not to sound so excited, but the truth was that she could have jumped into his arms as soon as she got downstairs. She was so happy to see him, but she wanted to see what he was going to say to her first.

"I'm really sorry Rachel. I know I should have told you, but I was just afraid."

"Afraid of what?"

"I was afraid that if I told you the truth, I'd lose you, but I ended up losing you by not telling you the truth." Puck was so nervous that he was rubbing his hands together. He always seemed to be nervous whenever he talked to Rachel. _Guess that's what being in love is all about. _

"I shouldn't have gotten mad at you. Quinn asked you to respect her privacy and I should have understood that. I was just so afraid that you were going to leave me that I sort of just freaked out," Rachel was finally able to tell him. "I also wanted to apologize for kissing Finn. I _know _that was wrong but I was just so hurt when I found out and you weren't the one who told me that it just sort of happened.

"I was going to tell you as soon as Quinn told me Finn knew; I was. But then Finn got to you first and I didn't get to explain my side of the story. Then I saw you kissing Finn and I just assumed…"

"I _don't _have feelings for Finn; _at all. _ I don't want to be with him because," she took a deep breath; "I'm in love with you." She was happy that she finally allowed herself to say those words to Noah.

"I'm in love with you too Rachel, that's what I came to tell you. I also came because I wanted to give you this." He pulled a red box out of his pocket.

"What's this?"

"Before my grandmother died last year she gave me her ring. She told me to give it to my first love." He took Rachel's hand and slid the ring on her finger.

"Noah, it's beautiful, but you don't have to give me this," said Rachel in awe.

"I want to. I love you Rachel."

"I love you too," she said hugging him. They hugged much in the same way as they did when Puck quit football for Glee. Rachel's heart was full of happiness. She couldn't have been any happier and neither could Puck. They were both happy to be in each other's arms again.

"So, this song," Rachel started, "who's the lucky girl?" she joked.

"Oh, you don't know her, but she's pretty special," he said putting his arm around her shoulder and kissing the top of her head.

"Is that so?" She crinkled her nose as Puck shook his head yes. "Well she sounds like a very lucky girl."

"She's not as lucky as I am," he whispered in her ear.

"You know, I wrote a song for someone too," Rachel teased.

"Oh yeah?" He tickled her sides.

"Yeah, I love him," she said between laughs. He picked her up and spun her around like in those cheesy teen movies except this moment was real and couldn't be found in any movie no matter how hard you looked. They went inside Rachel's house. Before they went upstairs, they ran into Rachel's parents.

"Rachel, what's he doing here?" asked Bill.

"Daddy, it's okay, Noah loves me." She smiled and flitted upstairs with Puck.

"Keep the door open!" shouted Bill from the bottom of the staircase.

"Sure thing daddy."

"Teenage girls," said Bill sighing.

"You worry too much about her, Bill. Our girl has got a good head on her shoulders; we raised her right," said Tim walking over to give his partner a kiss.

Rachel and Puck sat on her bed.

"Thank you for the song and again for the ring, it really is beautiful," said Rachel picking up the crumpled pieces of paper off her bedroom floor.

"You don't even have to thank me. So when am I gonna hear this song you wrote?" asked Puck pulling her onto the bed. Rachel grabbed the piece of paper on her bed and began singing it to the boy she wrote it about.

_I remember what you wore on our first date_

_You came into my life _

_And I thought hey_

_You know this could be something_

'_Cause everything you do and words you say_

_You know that it all takes my breath away_

_And now I'm left with nothing _

_So maybe it's true, that I can't live without you_

_And maybe two is better than one_

_But there's so much time, to figure out the rest of my life_

_And you've already got me coming undone_

_And I'm thinking two, is better than one_

_I remember every look upon your face,_

_The way you roll your eyes, the way you taste_

_You make it hard for breathing_

'_Cause when I close my eyes and drift away_

_I think of you and everything's okay_

_And finally now, believing _

_And maybe it's true, that I can't live without you _

_Well maybe two is better than one_

_But there's so much time, to figure out the rest of my life_

_And you've already got me coming undone_

_And I'm thinking two, is better than one_

_I remember what you wore on our first date_

_You came into my life _

_And I thought hey_

_Maybe it's true, that I can't live without you_

_Maybe two is better than one_

_But there's so much time, to figure out the rest of my life_

_And you've already got me coming undone _

_And I'm thinking two_

_Is better than one_

"So what'd you think?" she asked while biting her lip.

"It was perfect. You're amazing baby." He pulled her onto his lap and she leaned her head against his.

"I love you," she said resting her forehead against his.

"I love you too." He pushed her hair behind her ears and planted a kiss on his girlfriend's forehead. This time, he wasn't going to lose her.


	25. It's not just about sex

**A/N: I changed my mind. I wasn't quite ready to end the story yet. I'm really attached to it; it's probably my favorite one I've ever written, so you guys will have a few more chapters! Lemme know what you think! I'm thinking about continuing it as I watch the new episodes and incorporate those in there; it will still be my own story though. Let me know if you want to see that or not.**

"Puck, would you like to stay for dinner?" asked Tim later that night. Puck looked up at Rachel to make sure it was okay. He didn't want to make the situation awkward for her. He knew the only reason he was asked was because the Berrys cared about their daughter and they knew he made her happy.

"No," she said seriously. He was sort of bummed. He never wanted to have dinner with a girl's parents before, but they were in love and he wanted them to know it. "I'm just kidding, of course you can." She nudged him with her shoulder and rolled her eyes. "I _want_ you to stay."

"You think you're funny don't you?" He playfully nipped at her nose.

"Actually, I do," she smiled proudly.

"I guess that means yes." Tim came upstairs to find his daughter sitting on her boyfriend's lap. Rachel quickly scrambled to sit beside Noah. They interlocked fingers behind their back.

"Yes sir, I would be honored to stay for dinner," he smiled politely. Tim hesitated by Rachel's room for a few minutes before finally heading back downstairs. As soon as he was gone, Rachel went back to sitting on Puck's lap. He wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Honored? Sir? Why Mister Puckerman, I think I might be rubbing off on you just a tad bit." She tapped his nose with her index finger.

"What can I say? My girlfriend's a good influence on me," he said kissing the back of her neck. They sat in silence until Bill called them down for dinner.

"Mmm I don't want to move. I feel so comforted right now." She snuggled closer to Puck.

"I know what you mean, but I really don't want another death stare from either of your fathers." He squeezed her tighter before grabbing her hand and walking downstairs. Rachel took her usual seat in the chair against the wall with Puck sitting across from her. She would have rather sat next to him, but her fathers liked it better this way. There was complete and awkward silence until Bill broke it.

"So Puck, tell me about yourself?" he said staring his daughter's boyfriend in the eyes.

"Well what do you want to know sir?" he said apprehensively.

"Tell me about your parents, school. How is school going anyway? Getting good grades?"

"Uh school's fine. My grades are average." That was the reason he hated meeting a girl's parents. _Maybe it was better if I didn't stay for dinner. _He was shaking his leg underneath the table. Rachel knew the next question her father was going to ask and she wasn't thrilled about it. She gave her father "the teenage girl stare."

"No," she mouthed, but he went ahead and asked the question anyway.

"So what's with this Quinn girl?"

"You don't have to answer that," she said to Puck.

"I would actually love to hear the answer to this question," Bill continued. Rachel slumped down in her chair to hide her face in humiliation.

"Dad can I have a minute with you in the kitchen?" Rachel said through her teeth. Before her dad had the chance to answer, she grabbed his arm and pulled him into the kitchen.

"What on earth do you think you're doing?" she said with her hands on her hips.

"This boy has hurt you so many times and you're just willing to forgive him?"

"Yes daddy. Isn't that what you've always taught me? I know he's made some mistakes, but so have I and he's forgiven me for the mistakes I've made, so why shouldn't I forgive him?" He knew his daughter was right, but he wasn't ready to forgive him.

"Well maybe you're ready to forgive him, but I'm not. I saw how much pain he caused you, I'm not about to let that happen again."

"But do you see how much joy he brings me too? Noah is a good guy and if you just give him a chance, you'll see that too." She tried to reason with her dad, but there was no use. She walked back into the kitchen to find Puck getting up from his seat.

"Thanks for the invitation Mister Berry but I think I should be getting home now." He threw his napkin onto the table and grabbed his coat off the hook in the hallway.

"I think that's a good idea," suggested Tim.

"Wait, where are you going?" Rachel asked following him.

"I don't think now is the best time for me to be here. I'll see you soon alright." He held onto the back of her head and gave her a quick kiss on the forehead before slipping out the door. Once he was gone, Rachel averted her attention back to her fathers.

"Why did you do that?" she said walking back towards her parents.

"Rachel, I'm only looking out for you. I just don't want to see you get hurt again," said Bill trying to calm his daughter down.

"He won't hurt me again, I know he won't!" Rachel wasn't calming down. She was upset with her father.

"He will. Guys like him are only looking for one thing."

"Sex?" Rachel finished her father's sentence. "It's not like that with him. He's good to me daddy! He loves me and it's not just about sex with him, I know it's not."

"Did he tell you that it's different with you? That you're too special to him and he'll wait until you're ready?" Bill was calm at first, but now he was just as heated as his daughter was.

"Yes and I believe him."

"So did you have sex with him after he told you all that?" Rachel looked down and cracked her knuckles. It was something she did when she was nervous and her father caught on. "That's it. I don't want you seeing that boy anymore!"

"What? You can't do that, this isn't fair!" Rachel cried.

"I'm sorry Rachel. Those are my rules and they are final."

"Aren't you going to do anything?" she asked Tim. When Tim didn't answer, it made Rachel even madder. "I hate you!" She stomped up to her room. She slammed her door and lay face first on her pillow. _I thought they wanted me to be happy? They're the ones making me unhappy. _She started to sob. She couldn't not see Noah, it wouldn't work for her. A few minutes after she got upstairs she heard a knock on her door.

"Go away," said her muffled voice. She hid her face deeper into her favorite pillow.

"Rachel, honey, I think we need to talk." She looked up and saw Tim. She lay back down in the same position.

"What do you want?"

"I want to talk to you about Puck. I believe you," he said sitting on his daughter's bed.

"Well then why didn't you tell Daddy that? If you believe that Noah's a good guy, why didn't you just stop the whole situation from happening?" she said sitting up.

"Your father wouldn't have listened to me. He needs time to cool off; he'll come around."

"I love him Daddy. He makes me happy. Why can't Daddy see that?" She nestled into the crook of her father's arm.

"I know you do sweetheart. Your father's just concerned about you. He's afraid that this boy will hurt you again and he doesn't want to see you hurt," he reiterated.

"I wish he would just realize that it's my decision to make. If he hurts me again, which I honestly believe he won't, then I have to deal with it. But it's my life and I think I should get a say in who I can and cannot date."

"You're right. I'm gonna talk to him in a little. Things will work out." Tim got off Rachel's bed and headed downstairs.

When Puck got home his mother could tell something was bothering him.

"Is something bothering you sweetie?" she asked as he sat down on the couch.

"Nothing mom."

"You know you can talk to me. Is it about Rachel?" she said joining her son.

"Her parents don't want me seeing her anymore. They think I'm gonna hurt her again," he said glumly.

"Oh sweetie, don't feel bad. She's their daughter; they would have been protective of her regardless of who she dates." She wrapped her arms around he son and he laid his head on her shoulder.

"I don't think they would have been as protective if she was dating someone else. It's because of me; because of my reputation." Now that he knew Rachel loved him he didn't have such a hard time opening up to people anymore.

"You're right, that's probably one of the reasons. Sweetie, I know you've made some mistakes with her, but I can see how you feel about her. I know it's so different with this girl than all of the other girls before her and that's what you have to show her parents. You have to find a way to show them how much she means to you and if they care about their daughter, they'll see that you make her happy."

"I hope you're right Mom," he said standing up.

"I'm always right," she joked. "All I know is that this girl is very lucky to have you," she said walking into the kitchen.

"I'm lucky to have her; I really am." Puck walked upstairs and went to bed.


	26. Dads

**A/N: The author's note for this chapter doesn't really have anything to do with the story. But one author's note that does deal with the story, there's music in this chapter again! I haven't had a song in a while. Song: The Reason by Hoobastank. I'll post the other a/n at the end though.:) **

The next afternoon Puck sat outside on his porch steps. He still had no idea what to say to Rachel's parents. He really wanted to prove to them that it was different; that it wasn't about just sex with her. He wanted them to know that he loved Rachel and he would do anything for her. As he was thinking of what to say he heard footsteps on the walkway to his house. He looked up and saw Rachel's beautiful face walking towards him.

"I'm so sorry about last night," were the first words she spoke. "I can't believe my dad did that." She stood there with her arms folded across her chest.

"Its fine," he said pulling her into a hug. He rested his head on her shoulder and noticed that she smelled of vanilla again; which was quickly becoming his favorite smell.

"They know we had sex," Rachel said quietly.

"You told them?" He sounded surprised.

"It just sort of slipped out. I'm sorry."

"It's fine. I just wish there was some way to get them to understand how much we want to be together."

"We've been through so many obstacles as a couple; maybe it's just a sign that this isn't meant to be; that we're not meant to be," she said backing away.

"No, we are meant to be. Rach, you're the first girl I've ever felt this way about before and I know couples in high school don't always last, but honestly I don't want to be with anyone else for a long time if ever again. I see myself actually having a future with you and that's something I've never been able to do before." He grabbed her hand again and brought it up to his lips. "I love you and I'm going to find a way to prove that to your parents."

"You're amazing, did you know that?" she said rubbing the back of her hand against his cheek.

"I'm only amazing because of you," he said sweetly. She took his face into her hands and brought him closer to her. They shared another one of their tender kisses. Rachel found her foot steadily moving upward. She felt like she was in a fairytale moment. Nobody ever thought Puck was capable of loving someone the way he loved Rachel, and neither did he. But now that he'd fallen deeply in love for the first time, he was glad it was with her.

"You know, your charm is quite sexy sometimes," she said pulling away. She held onto his shirt.

"You think so?" he asked holding onto her waist.

"Very much so." She gently bit his bottom lip.

"I find _you _to be quite sexy."

"Oh, why thank you." As they continued to kiss, Stacy came walking out of the house.

"Who's this?" she asked looking up at her big brother.

"This is Rachel. Rachel, this is my little sister Stacy," he introduced them.

"Well hi Stacy, it's nice to meet you," she said squatting down to Stacy's level.

"You must be the girl Puck has been talking about!" she said excitedly. "Puck talks about you _all _the time, right Puck!" She tugged at her brother's shirt.

"Has he?" She smirked at her boyfriend.

"Yeah he tells mommy all the time about how he loves you and how he misses you," she sing-songed.

"Okay Stacy, that's enough. I think Mom's calling. You should go back into the house," he whispered to his sister before giving her a shove back up the stairs.

"She's adorable!" squealed Rachel once Stacy was gone.

"Yeah, she's an awesome little kid."

"I better get going. I promised Mercedes and Kurt they could take me shopping. They want to give me a new wardrobe," said Rachel rolling her eyes.

"Well don't change too much, after all I did fall in love with you and your sequined legwarmers," he teased.

"Hey, don't hate on the sequined legwarmers." She playfully smacked his arm. She kissed the tip of his nose and skipped off like a little girl. As he watched her walk away, he couldn't help but smile. She really was just the most attractive thing he'd ever seen. She had him totally and completely whipped and for the first time he was fine being a one-woman man. Now he just had to show her fathers that.

* * *

"I'm coming, I'm coming," yelled Bill as he heard a knock on the door. When he got to the door he saw that Puck was standing in front of him. "What do you want? I've made up my mind and I don't want Rachel seeing you," he said blatantly.

"I understand that sir, but I just wanted to make one thing clear. I have no intention of hurting your daughter at all." He was going to continue, but was stopped by Bill.

"I've heard that one before," Bill groaned.

"Bill, let the boy explain," Tim suggested.

"I know I've said it many times before, but this time it's for real. I am madly in love with Rachel and I want to be with her more than I have ever wanted to be with anyone else before and that's the honest truth." He seemed sincere, but Bill couldn't be sure.

"How do I know you're not just saying this to appease me? How do I know that you're not just using my daughter for sex?"

"If it was about sex with Rachel I would have left her after we had sex," he stated awkwardly, "but I'm still here and I'm trying to show you how much I care for your daughter. I love Rachel. Would I try this hard if it was anything less?" Bill still looked skeptical, so Puck left him with one more piece of mind. "If that doesn't prove it to you, I don't know what will, but I'm just letting you know that I won't stop trying. Rachel and I belong together and I'll find some way to make sure you know that." After Puck left, Bill stood in the doorway for a while dumbfounded before finally shutting the door.

* * *

Later that night, her fathers wanted to have a talk.

"What about now? Maybe this time you can tell me who I should be friends with," said Rachel sarcastically.

"Sit down please," pleaded Bill, "I want to talk to you about Puck." He directed his daughter into their living room chair as Tim silently stood close by.

"What are you gonna tell me now, that he's not good enough for me? That I could do better?"

"I just wanted to tell you that you have my permission to date this boy," said her father empathetically.

"Are you serious?" asked Rachel in disbelief. "What made you change your mind?"

"Puck did." Rachel looked confused so Bill continued. "He came by earlier today and talked to me."

"What did he say?"

"He said that he loves you and cares for you. It was just the way he said it. It seemed genuine and I see that he makes you happy. Who am I to stand in the way of that?"

"Thank you daddy!" She ran to give her father a hug.

"You really love this boy, don't you?"

"I do, so much daddy." As Rachel gave Tim a hug he whispered in her ear. "I told you everything would work out." Rachel just smiled at her fathers and thought about how lucky she was that she had Noah. Nothing could get in their way now; they could finally be a drama-free couple. As soon as she thanked her parents, she left to go tell Puck the great news; they could finally be happy.

Rachel eagerly waited as Puck came downstairs to open his front door.

"Hey, what's up?" He looked at the clock and noticed it was after 10:30. For Rachel, that was late; especially on a school night. "Is something wrong?"

"No no, everything's the opposite of wrong; everything's perfect." Puck squinted his eyes in confusion.

"Why are you so happy?" She threw her arms around his neck.

"Because my boyfriend is incredible."

"I'm loving the compliments here, but I don't think your dads would be too happy if they knew you were here right now," he said looking at her.

"They know I'm here. They gave me permission to date you. After the little talk you gave them, they changed their mind about you. Now we can finally be together," she said happily. He picked her up and spun her around. "But they said on one condition."

"Okay, what's that?"

"That I'm never ever allowed to have sex again until I'm married," she laughed. "Seriously, it freaked them out to know that I've already lost my virginity, but they trust me and they're slowly hoping to trust you too."

"Well we wouldn't want to do anything to break that trust, now do we?"

"No we don't," she smiled. "So did you really mean all of the things you told my dads?"

"Every single word of it." She stood on her tip-toes to give him a kiss.

"You know, my dads trust me so much that they'd even let me spend the night with you; in separate rooms of course."

"Oh, hello, you must be Rachel." Puck's mother came into the living room to greet her son's girlfriend.

"Hi Mrs. Puckerman, it's nice to meet you." She shook her hand.

"Call me Kathleen. It's nice to finally meet you too. Would you like me to give you a ride home? It's getting pretty late."

"Can Rachel stay here tonight?" Kathleen raised her eyebrows at her son. He'd just told her that they weren't allowed to date and now he was asking if she could spend the night. Puck noticed his mother's expression and put her mind at ease. "Well it's just that it's getting late and I don't want you guys to be out there in the dark." _Oh, he's good, thought Rachel. _He really wanted to spend time with Rachel. They hadn't just hung out together in a while and he missed that.

"I don't know, Noah. Would her parents be okay with this?"

"My dads know I'm here." Puck gave his mother a pleading look and she gave in.

"Well if it's alright with Rachel's parents, you can stay here."

"I'll go call them right now." Rachel ran off to the bathroom to make her phone call. Once she left, Kathleen pulled some blankets out and laid them on the couch.

"Can Rachel sleep in my room?" Kathleen looked at Puck.

"I don't know," she said hesitantly.

"Please?" he begged his mother.

"Fine, but one of you have to sleep _on _the floor," she eyed him.

"Sure thing," he said before kissing her on the cheek and flying up the stairs.

"And the door stays open," she shouted.

"Mhm," was the last thing she heard her son say. Kathleen just shook her head and wondered how Rachel got her son to become a committed relationship type of guy.

"So," said Rachel as she came into Puck's room, "what do you want to do?"

"I'll show you." He pulled her onto the bed and gave her a quick kiss.

"I like that idea," she said kissing him again. "I like your room," she said randomly.

"Really?" He asked puzzled. He didn't think it was all that great.

"Yeah, it's," she tried to find a word to use, "comfy." Puck lay on his back and rested his eyes. Rachel laid down and propped herself up on her side.

"Thank you so much. I don't know how you did it, but I'm so glad you got my parents to see you how I do, well not in the sense of seeing you like a boyfriend, but like an amazing person." Rachel rambled on.

"You are way too cute sometimes," he said opening his eyes. He let out a slight giggle.

"Sorry, I ramble…"

"When you're nervous, I know, but you don't have anything to be nervous about. Everything's finally working out and we're together. I couldn't be happier." He turned to his side and put his hand on Rachel's back.

"Me neither," she smiled giddily. She pressed her lips against his and found herself moving to lay on her back. Puck put both of his hands on either side of Rachel. The kiss got passionate pretty quickly before Puck forced himself to stop.

"Sorry, sorry," he said laying back down. "I get a little caught up sometimes."

"I know what you mean. I'm surprised it actually happens to me too. It's so easy to lose control with you; I've always got to stop myself." She sat up and saw his guitar in the corner of the room. "You know what we should do?" She got off the bed and took the guitar into her hands.

"Elope?" He was mocking her for the time she said it to Finn. He wasn't there, but when Finn told him about it, he thought it was pretty funny. She nudged his stomach with her elbow and rolled her eyes.

"Actually, I was thinking that you should play me a song," she suggested.

"Okay, what do you want to hear?" He took the guitar from Rachel's hands and began randomly strumming.

"How about one of these?" She looked around his room and saw an orange notebook on his bedside table. "Puck's Songs" was scribbled on the cover. Puck flipped all the way to the back of the book and played her a recent song.

"This is one that I wrote recently. It's about a special someone," he said winking at her. She felt herself blushing a little. Even after all they had been through together, she still found herself blushing when he flirted with her.

_I'm not a perfect person _

_There's many things I wish I didn't do_

_But I continue learning _

_I never meant to do those things to you _

_And so I have to say before I go _

_That I just want you to know_

_I've found a reason for me _

_To change who I used to be _

_A reason to start over new _

_And the reason is you _

_I'm sorry that I hurt you _

_It's something I must live with everyday _

_And all the pain I put you through _

_I wish that I could take it all away _

_And be the one who catches all your tears_

_That's why I need you to hear_

_I've found out a reason to me _

_To change who I used to be _

_A reason to start over new _

_And the reason is you_

_And the reason is you _

_I'm not a perfect person _

_I never meant to do those things to you _

_And so I have to say before I go _

_That I just want you to know _

_I've found a reason to show _

_A side of me you didn't know _

_A reason for all that I do _

_And the reason is you _

When Puck finished his song he noticed a tear in Rachel's eye.

"That was beautiful. You're such an amazing songwriter Noah and I'm glad to have you on my arm," she said leaning over to wrap her arms around him.

"Well I have some good inspiration for it." He poked her in her side and she jumped.

"Lately, so have I." After a few minutes of silence Rachel asked a question. "I've always loved the song you wrote when you first auditioned for Glee. Where did you get the inspiration from?" She saw the look on his face when she asked the question. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"Naw, it's fine," he said rubbing her back. "It's about my dad. When he left us, that's when I really started getting into music and songwriting. I wrote that song because I was so mad at him for leaving my family in the mess we were in. I thought how could a guy do that to someone he claimed he loved. How could a guy ever leave his wife and two children; one of which who wasn't born yet?" Rachel looked at Puck and nestled closer to him.

"Your dad is going to regret ever leaving you guys. He missed out on knowing an amazing son. He will see that one day."

"How does it feel to have two dads? I know that's a random question, but I don't even know what it's like to have one dad."

"It's definitely difficult sometimes. Don't get me wrong I'm not ashamed of them at all; I love them. But I've always wondered what it's like to have a mom, to have an woman to go to about boys and make up and girl things, you know?" she said laying on his lap. Her hair was sprawled across his legs and he rubbed the top of her head.

"I understand that; that's how I feel about not having a father, but I wouldn't change anything. My mom worked so hard to raise my sister and I and I feel like sometimes I just let her down or I disappoint her. That makes me feel bad because I think about all the things I put her through and all the things she's had to go through because of me." He looked down in disappointment.

"Your mother is probably so proud of you. Your father was the one who put your mother through everything; not you. You can't think that's your fault because it isn't. Your mom loves you, don't ever forget that." He bent down to kiss her on the lips.

"She's right you know," said Kathleen walking into Puck's room. "You should listen to that amazing girlfriend of yours." She winked at Rachel.

"Thank you! I try to tell him that all the time," Rachel kidded.

"I am very proud of you sweetheart. I know sometimes I might not say it enough, but I just wanted you to know." She kissed her son on the top of his head.

"Told you," Rachel smiled.

"Alright guys, it's getting pretty late. Time to get to bed; you've got school tomorrow Noah." She said good night to Rachel and Puck and went downstairs.

"Goodnight," said Puck turning off the light.

"Goodnight." Rachel gave Puck a goodnight kiss before slipping into the sleeping bag on the floor.

**A/N: Here's what I wanted to say. Am I the only one who's SO stoked to see the new season of GLEE! What do you guys want to see happen? What do you think will happen? Also, is anyone going to the Glee tour? I am PRAYING I get to go. Hopefully the tickets don't sell out though **** Anyways, back to my point. Did you guys hear about Naya Rivera and Mark Salling dating? I heard about it a while ago but I didn't think it was true. I think it's cute if they are because they're both gorgeous people! I'm the biggest Mark Salling fan ever, so of course it sorta bums ya out at first, but if they're happy, I'm happy**** Who would you guys want to see date in real life? It doesn't have to happen or anything, I just want to see who you guys think is cute together. I love Lea & Mark & Lea & Cory. So anyway people, let me know what you think of the story. Thanks again for all the R&R's.**


	27. Here in your arms

Puck couldn't sleep that night. He was just too excited that everything was finally working out with Rachel. He tossed and he turned, but it was no use. He'd rather have Rachel in his arms. But his mom said they couldn't lie in the bed together.

* * *

Rachel didn't sleep much that night either. She had just gotten back together with Puck and they wanted to spend time together. Tomorrow they had school, then Glee practice, and then Rachel had a big audition right after that. Their week was packed and their weekend wasn't free either. Rachel was going away with her dads for a few days and Puck had to babysit Stacy and her friend. This was the only time they'd really have to spend together. She missed being in his arms, and since that wouldn't happen for a while; she wished that it could happen tonight. But his mom didn't want them laying together. She peeked her head over the bed to see if Puck was sleeping. She thought he would be, but she was surprised to find him turned towards her with his eyes wide open.

"Hey, what are you doing up," said Puck holding the back of her head.

"I couldn't sleep," she whispered.

"Yeah, me neither. I have some stuff on my mind."

"Like what?" She leaned her head on the bed.

"You, I was just thinking about how much it's going to suck that we won't see each other for a few days."

"I know, I was thinking about the same thing. But you better call me when I'm away this weekend." She playfully poked him in the chest.

"I will." He held his palm out and she put her hand in his.

"I have an idea," Rachel smiled.

"Yeah, what's that?"

"You should lay down here with me," she said unexpectedly.

"I'd love to, but my mom said…"

"She said we couldn't lay in the bed together; she said nothing about the floor. We've just got to make sure we're up before she is." He thought about it for a minute. It wasn't like they were going to do anything, they both just wanted to be in each other's arms. _There's nothing wrong with that, right? He asked himself. _His lips soon formed a big grin.

"I'm impressed by your creativity," he said getting down on the floor.

"Well what can I say? You've got a smart girlfriend." She gripped his arm and pulled him tighter to her.

"I sure do." He kissed the side of her head. He found his lips moving towards hers. When he pulled back, she was biting her lip and twirling her hair. He found it very hard to resist her.

"You are such a tease, you know that?" he said trying his hardest to resist her.

"It's the only way I do it baby." She tapped his cheek and put her lips against his again. Every time they kissed; he found it harder and harder to control himself. He felt how Finn did every time he kissed a girl. He would force himself to stop though because he didn't want to lose her. He quickly pulled away and put his hands over his face and rubbed his eyes.

"Is something wrong?" she asked seeming a little surprised.

"I can't lose control with you. It's hard for me, but I'm trying," he said honestly.

"Baby, that's all I want from you. It means a lot to me that you're even trying. If it makes you feel any better, I feel the exact same way." He looked down at her and pulled her into a hug. She laid her head on her chest and wrapped her arms around him. They both fell asleep happier than they'd been in a while.

* * *

"Rachel!" She heard someone call her name as she walked into the choir room the next morning.

"Hey Finn, how are you doing?" she asked him while putting her bags on the floor.

"Good, good. So I wanted to talk to you about something." He scuffed his feet against the floor and had his hands in his pocket the whole time. He was looking down and acting weird and Rachel had no idea why.

* * *

As Puck walked through the parking lot to school the next morning, he ran into Quinn.

"Hey Quinn, what's up?" He continued to walk.

"I wanted to, possibly, maybe, talk to you about something," she said nervously.

"Sure, what's up?" He stopped walking to face her.

* * *

"Rachel, I lied," Finn continued.

"About what?" She furrowed her eyebrows and waited for him to respond.

"About the kiss," She seemed confused, so he clarified his statement. "in the auditorium. I told you that it didn't mean anything, but that wasn't the truth, because it meant a lot actually." Rachel's eyes grew wide with shock.

"What about Quinn?"

"I've always tried to deny my feelings for you, because I was with Quinn and I was having a baby, but when I found out the baby was Puck's it hurt but I was happy in a way. I didn't have to be tied down to her anymore. When I kissed you in the auditorium I forgot how amazing I felt the first few times we kissed. I was going to tell you then, but you told me you felt nothing and that actually hurt me. When Quinn and I got back together, we weren't as attracted to each other as we used to be. We had both grown apart and had feelings for different people, so we broke up again. This time, it's for good. I think I'm in love with you Rachel." Rachel wasn't sure what to say.

"Finn, I've _always _wanted to hear those words come out of your mouth." She moved closer to him and put her hands on his arms. "I've always hoped that you had secretly wanted to be with me over Quinn." Finn had a glimmer of hope. "But it's too late now. I'm in love with Noah and that's who I want to be with. I'm sorry," she said before picking up her bags and walking away.

"Puck's a lucky guy; I hope he knows that," said Finn sadly. Rachel bowed her head and smiled at him one last time before walking out the door.

* * *

Puck waited for Quinn to say something.

"What did you want to tell me?" He asked again. She fidgeted around for a while before finally speaking.

"I lied to you," she spoke.

"What are you talking about?" He was baffled.

"When I told you I wanted to raise the baby with Finn, I only said that because I was scared. The truth is that I would've done anything to keep the baby with you, but I knew you were a player and I couldn't trust you. _That _was the only thing holding me back. If you were as trustworthy as Finn a few months ago, I would have told him the truth so I could be free to be with you. When everything happened with Rachel, I was sort of glad. I know that sounds extremely selfish, but I thought "Puck won't care because Rachel didn't mean that much to him anyway." But I saw that she did mean a lot to you; I saw that you were hurting when you weren't with her and that actually hurt me. I was so hoping that you'd forget about her and want to be with me," she said with no hope in her voice.

"What about Finn?" he asked.

"We broke up. We found ourselves growing apart and we realized we didn't love each other like we used to. I think I'm in love with you."

"Do you know how long I've been waiting for you to say that?" She seemed surprised. She thought he wouldn't have felt the same way, but maybe he did. "I had been waiting so long for you to give Finn up so we could raise our baby together and be a family. I love you Quinn." It made her happy to hear those words. "You're the mother of my child, I'll always love you and we'll always have a special bond, but I'm not in love with you." That was what she was expecting him to say. "I'm in love with Rachel and I'm happy with her. For the first time in my life I actually want to make a relationship work and I'm going to try my hardest to keep us together. I'm not going to hurt Rachel like I hurt you or Santana. I'm sorry for everything I put you through these past couple of months, but I really hope you and Finn work things out because you guys are good together."

"You've changed so much, Puck. Rachel's a lucky girl; I hope she knows it," said a hurt Quinn.

"Thanks Quinn." He smiled at her before walking away.

* * *

After school, Glee practice was a little awkward. Finn and Quinn realized that they probably should have waited until after Glee club to confess their feelings, but there was nothing they could do now. Puck and Rachel actually avoided each other for most of the practice. Rachel had to practice her duet with Finn; which was extremely awkward for both of them considering what he'd just told her earlier. It wasn't that Puck and Rachel were hiding anything from each other; they just didn't want any drama. They knew it was better to hear it from each other than to hear it from someone else though. So as soon as practice was over they pulled each other to the side.

"I have to tell you something," they said at the exact same time.

"You go first," said Puck.

"No, you go."

"Alright, well it doesn't mean anything, but today Quinn told me something. She said that she's in love with me." Puck was worried. He didn't want Rachel to think he had feelings for her. Rachel was relieved. Now it wouldn't be so awkward when she told him about Finn.

"Finn actually told me the same thing this morning," she stated.

"Really?" Puck pursed his lips. For once, he was glad that Finn had told Rachel he was in love with her.

"Yup. What did you tell Quinn?" she asked.

"I told her that we'll always have a special bond because of our daughter, but I'm in love with my incredible girlfriend." He brought her closer to him and she jokingly pushed him away. "What'd you tell Finn?"

"I told him that if he had told me a couple of months ago, I wouldn't have had a second thought, but I'm in love with you, so I don't want anything to happen between me and him." He playfully tousled her hair as she swatted his hand away. She looked at the clock and saw that it was 4:30. "Oh, shoot. I better get going. My audition's in an hour."

"Good luck baby." He gave her a good luck kiss and she was off.


	28. I'll miss you

Today was Sunday. It's when Rachel would return from her trip with her fathers. Even though they talked on the phone once a day since she was gone, it wasn't the same as actually being together. Puck anxiously waited on his couch for a call from Rachel to let him know when she was home. He waited and waited but still received no phone call hours later. He figured that she had probably wanted to unpack and get settled in before she came to see him, so he headed upstairs to go to bed. As soon as he stood up, he heard a knock on the door. When he opened the door, he saw Rachel standing there drowned in luggage. Just like Rachel to take 4 bags on a 2 day trip to Chicago. She struggled with her bags at first so she just threw them to the ground and flung her arms around his neck.

"Why did you bring your bags all the way over here? You could've unpacked first." He squeezed her tight.

""My flight was 2 hours late and you were the first person I wanted to see." She crushed her lips into his and held onto his neck.

"Why didn't you call first?" he asked trying to regain the breath that had been knocked out of him the moment he saw her.

"I wanted it to be a surprise." She pulled back from the kiss and smiled at him.

"So how was Chicago?" he asked carrying her bags into his house.

"It was amazing! The city was fantastic and it only made my anticipation for going to New York that much more exciting. I loved it so much!" She happily plopped down on the couch. "Why thank you for carrying my bags. You're such a gentleman." She winked at him.

"Did you have fun? What'd you do? Tell me all about it," he pressed.

"Well my dads took me to see a bunch of Broadway plays. I got to see Wicked, Chicago, and my personal favorite Spring Awakening. Then they took me shopping and I got a bunch of new clothes. I even tasted hot dogs and pizza and let me tell you, it was delicious!" A few minutes later he asked another question.

"Oh yeah I forgot, how did your audition for Julliard go?"

"They thought I did great, but I wasn't exactly what they were looking for," she said solemnly. He knew she was holding something back by the awkward way she finished the sentence.

"Did anything else exciting happen?" he questioned.

"Yes," she paused. He waited for her to continue. "I got an amazing opportunity to be a part of the Spring Awakening Broadway production. The casting directors were looking for a Wendla. They saw my performance at Sectionals and said I'd be a perfect fit," she said eagerly.

"Baby that's amazing!" said Puck. "I'm so proud of you!" He gave her a kiss on the cheek. He looked at her and noticed that she wasn't as excited for herself as he was. "What's wrong? This is a great opportunity, you should be thrilled!"

"I'd have to move to Chicago."

"For how long?" It slowly started sinking in to him.

"They'd want me to sign a contract for at least 4 years," she said softly.

"How long?"

"Four years…" She looked at him and noticed the sullen expression on his face. "But that would mean we couldn't be together," she said obviously. Puck immediately felt a hole start tearing in his heart. He knew that if Rachel left for 4 years it meant they were over. He knew it would be selfish of him to ask her to stay. He saw how happy it made her when she talked about it though. For Rachel, this was a dream come true, a once in a lifetime opportunity, and he couldn't take that away from her.

"Chicago's like 5 hours away."

"I know," was all she said.

"When would you have to leave?"

"I have to start immediately. I'd leave on Monday."

"But that's…"

"Tomorrow," Rachel finished his sentence. "I'm not gonna go. I can't leave you here. We've already been through enough and…" Puck stopped her short.

"You have to go." He didn't mean it as a command but as a supportive gesture.

"What? You _want _me to go?" She asked; stunned.

"You have to. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I can't let you pass this up."

"But…" she didn't finish her sentence.

"What's holding you back? If the only thing that's holding you back is me, don't let it. I don't want to be the reason for you not chasing after your dreams." He put his arm around her shoulder and she leaned her head against his shoulder.

"But what's going to happen to us?" She looked up at him.

"We'll figure something out." It's not that Rachel was hurt that he was supporting her; his support meant the world to her, but she sort of wished that he would ask her to stay.

"Where are your mom and sister?" She looked around and noticed that they weren't there.

"Mom and Stacy spent the weekend at my aunt's house. They asked if I wanted to come, but I felt like staying home."

"Do you mind if I take a shower real quick?" She rummaged through her bags to find an outfit.

"Of course you can. You can use the one in my room." They went upstairs. While Rachel took a quick shower, Puck laid on his bed and rested his eyes. About 10 minutes later he awoke to the smell of spring flowers. He felt Rachel's lips on his and he opened his eyes.

"That was quick," he said staring at her. She was wearing some black cropped jogging pants and a blue tank top with blue flip flops. For once he actually missed her pink. She wore her hair in a wet, messy bun, and he thought she never looked better. "You know you're a total turn on right now." He pulled her onto the bed.

"Is this your way of saying I look terrible?" she joked.

"If by terrible you mean gorgeous, then yes."

"Flattery will get you nowhere mister." She got off the bed and went downstairs to get something out of her bags. Puck moved over to his chair in the corner of the room. This was probably the hardest time he'd ever had resisting her. She looked absolutely perfect and she was extra flirty tonight. _Stay calm, just don't do anything stupid. _When Rachel came back upstairs, she found her boyfriend in the corner.

"What are you doing over there?" She hopped onto the bed.

"Well I'm finding it very hard to resist you right now, so I figured that this is the best thing to do." He put his hands in his lap.

"Who said you had to resist me?" She propped herself up on her elbow and laid her head in her hand. She rubbed her hand in circles on the bed motioning for him to join her.

"You little tease, you." He just shook his head. She got up and seductively strutted towards him. When she got to where he was sitting, she sat on his lap so that she was facing him. She put her hands on the chair on either side of Puck's head. She started off by putting her lips on his. Then she moved on to his neck. She lightly blew on it at first and her warm breath made the hair on the back of his neck stand up straight, but then she pressed her soft lips against the rough skin on his neck moved them in a sucking motion.

"Rach, um, I," he had to clear his throat to continue. He was right, she was **extra **flirty tonight and he had no idea why. "I don't think we should be doing this."

"Why not?" she paid no attention to his command and continued kissing his neck.

"Because I don't feel like dying," she stopped to look up at him, "which is what will happen if your parents ever find out." She let out a sigh and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"I had a talk with my fathers this weekend." He leaned forward as he waited for her to go on. "Remember when I went to the chastity club meeting and I talked about how girls want sex just as much as guys do and that abstinence doesn't work in high schools," Puck shook his head in agreement, "well I told my parents about that. I explained to them that I'm going to be turning 18 in two years and that I should be allowed to make my own choices about things like sex."

"What'd they say?" he asked wearily.

"Well they weren't so keen on the idea that their daughter's a sexual being, but they realize that I'm right. Abstinence doesn't work in high schools, and my fathers know that I'm not a terrible person for having sex before I'm married. They realize that I may have sex in high school and they'd rather me be safe then end up pregnant, so they took me to get birth control, just in case anything should happen. My dads understand that I'm in a committed relationship with someone I love," she explained to him. He was still hesitant with the whole thing. He didn't want to break her father's trust but he also really wanted to be with Rachel again. When they were together the first time, it was unlike anything he ever felt before. It felt a lot different knowing that it actually _meant _something to both of them instead of it just being a one night stand. Rachel interrupted his thought process as she got up from his lap. She pulled at his arm and wrapped it around her body. He rested his head on hers and they stayed like that for a little while. After a few minutes, Rachel turned around to face him and pulled him onto the bed. She laid on her back and brought Puck over to lay on top of her. He touched her soft pink lips before planting a kiss on them. She pulled back before anything else happened.

"You don't have any other baby mamas that I don't know about, do you?" She laughed.

"Well…" She opened her mouth in shock.

"Not funny." She playfully punched him in the arm.

"I'm just kidding babe."

Once they started, this time they wouldn't stop. Rachel started the way she did the night of the thunderstorm; by removing his shirt. Her nails lightly skimmed the skin of his back

which made him jump a little bit. It was so weird, because he knew that nobody else would ever make him feel that way again. She tossed his shirt on the floor. Puck moved his lips to Rachel's neck and repeated the actions she had done earlier. She couldn't help but let out a silent moan. She took his hand and interlocked his fingers with hers. He stopped kissing her neck to quickly kiss her hand. She softly dug her nails into his back. Soon they found Puck laying on his back and Rachel sitting with her legs on either side of his waist. Before they kissed again, she traced the outline of his chiseled chest with her fingertips. Her lips moved back onto his as she pulled his blue comforter over their heads.

* * *

The next day, Rachel and Puck sat with Kurt, Mercedes, and Artie at lunch. Kurt, Mercedes, and Artie were talking about the latest movie they went to see over the weekend, while Puck and Rachel were sort of off in their own world. They exchanged sweet little kisses while the others were caught up in their conversation.

"Mohawk! Diva! Could you please keep the PDA to a minimum? Some of us are trying to eat over here." Mercedes threw a tiny piece of her bread at Puck and Rachel. They discreetly locked fingers underneath the table.

"I'll be right back." Puck kissed Rachel on the cheek before walking away.

"How was your trip to Chicago?" Artie asked once Puck was gone.

"It was so much fun!"

"I'm so jealous that you got to go," said Mercedes, "and I think I'm actually going to miss you when you leave."

"Aww well thanks for the sarcasm guys. I'll miss you too." She gave Mercedes a playful shove.

"Although you were extremely annoying at times and always hogged the spotlight, I'll miss your crazy ways," joked Kurt.

"Yeah, when you weren't acting like a diva, you were pretty cool," Artie chimed in.

"I'm really feeling the love," she teased. Their lunch was quickly ruined by a visitor.

"Rachel, I heard that you might be leaving for a while." Jacob Ben-Israel joined them at their lunch table.

"Oh, hello Jacob," groaned Rachel.

"I think you should let me take you out on a date." His big red afro was right in her face as he got closer. He inched closer to Rachel. Every time he inched closer, she'd inch farther away.

"You know, I'd love to," she said sarcastically, "but unfortunately that's just not possible."

"Why is that?" She found herself at the edge of the bench. She scooted one more time and turned around to run smack dab into Puck.

"Because she's already taken." Kurt, Mercedes, and Artie all giggled under their breaths as Puck explained it to the red headed nerd. "I think it's best if you go now Jacob," Puck advised. Nobody could have run out of that lunch room faster than Jacob had. Once he was gone everybody started cracking up.

"Berry's got her very own protector," teased Mercedes.

"I can protect myself thank you very much, but thank you," she turned to Puck, "you just saved me from going on a date with _him_," she cringed.

"I thought you'd like that. Maybe it's not too late to call him back. I'm sure you'd much rather go out with him." Puck enjoyed teasing his girlfriend about Jacob's creepy crush on her.

"Ha ha, very funny," she said sarcastically. He kissed Rachel on the lips.

"What are you two gonna go when Rachel leaves?" Kurt referred to their obsessive PDA.

"I don't know." Rachel leaned against Puck's shoulder and stuck out her bottom lip like a little child.

"So Artie, how did you date with Tina go last night?" asked Puck. Everyone else at the table raised their eyebrows.

"Tina's a liar." Everyone was stunned at the accusation that Artie had just made about what they thought was his best friend.

"Artie, I'm sure there's a misunderstanding. Tina wouldn't lie to you about whatever it is you think she lied to you about," stated Rachel.

"Tina doesn't have a stutter; she's been faking it this whole time."

"So?" They all said simultaneously.

"So? She lied to me about her disability. She can fake her stutter; I can't fake being in this wheelchair." Artie really seemed hurt by Tina's admission.

"Artie, Tina may have lied, but I'm sure she didn't mean to hurt you. Just give her another chance," suggested Kurt.

"Why should I give her another chance?"

"Because I know how important second chances are. I've never been one to give anybody second chances, but when Rachel gave me a second chance and a third, it meant everything to me." Rachel touched her boyfriend's face. "But that's another story." Everyone at the table laughed. Artie considered what his friends said.

"I guess you guys are right. I'm gonna go find Tina." He rolled off to find his girl.

* * *

After school, Rachel had to immediately head to Chicago. She packed before school, so she had time to say goodbye to Puck.

"Well, I should get going," she said standing outside her house. They didn't have time to pack everything so they'd have everything shipped to them in a few weeks.

"I'm going to miss you so much." Puck put his hand on Rachel's cheek and tucked a stray hair behind her ear.

"I'm going to miss you too." Rachel cleared a lump in her throat. She tried holding back tears, but it was no use.

"Don't cry, cause if you do, I might actually cry too." Puck wiped the tears that fell from Rachel's face.

"Don't ever forget me, okay?" She faked a smile.

"I could never forget you. Try not to fall for any of those Broadway guys when you become a big star, alright?" He held onto the back of her head and scrunched her hair.

"None of them could even be compared to you," she said truthfully.

"Rachel, we've got to get going." Bill poked his head out of the car window to get his daughter's attention.

"I love you Noah." She wrapped her hands around his back.

"I love you too Rach." He grabbed onto her shoulders and pulled her into a hug. Neither of them wanted to let go, but after another 'honk' of Rachel's fathers car horn, they let go. Rachel waved one last time before getting into the backseat of their van and driving away.


	29. Come Back to Me

**A/N: This chapter's pretty dark. You'll see what I'm talking about. Hopefully it wasn't too dark or too far off par. Anyways, enjoy! Song: David Cook: Come back to me**

Two months after Rachel left, everything pretty much returned to normal. New Directions was looking for a new member, but no one was as good as Rachel. Puck went back to his usual way of skipping out on school and sulking around the house. On the days he did go to school he'd sleep in class then come home and sit up in his room all night. He didn't really communicate with the other Glee club members much anymore; he kept to himself. Santana figured that since Rachel was out of the picture, she might have another shot. Every day she'd find some way to ask him out and every day he'd turn her down. You think she'd learn, but Santana was persistent.

"Rachel's gone!" Santana slammed the door on Puck's locker shut. He didn't answer her instead he stood there with his arms crossed while leaning against his locker. "She's not coming back Puck, just face it."

"She could," he said unfeeling.

"No Puck, she can't! She's gone and you need to get over her!" Santana said angrily. When Puck just ignored what she said, she stormed away. "Talk to him. Maybe you'll have better luck," she commanded to Kurt in the choir room. As soon as Puck walked in, he went up to him.

"Puck, Rachel's gone," he said sweetly.

"I know." He sat down in the nearest chair.

"You can't sulk around for the rest of your life. I'm sure what you had with Rachel was special, but right now you can't be with her. You've got to let her go; you just have to." Kurt put a comforting hand on Puck's shoulder, but Puck quickly shook it off. He stood up and left the room without saying one word to anyone else. When he got home later that evening, he had a repeat of the conversation he had at school.

"Honey I know how much you love this girl, but she's gone." His mother walked into his room.

"Why does everyone keep saying that?" he said; clearly annoyed.

"Because it's true," She sat on the edge of her son's bed.

"Everyone's acting like she's dead and I'm never gonna see her again. She could come back." He slouched down on his bed.

""I know you wish Rachel wouldn't have left, but don't you think its better that she follows her dreams? You're right, there's a chance she could come back, but if this goes well for her, don't get your hopes up," she said in the nicest way possible.

"Could you go now? I just really want to be left alone." Kathleen left and Puck closed his door on her way out. He fell back onto his bed and plucked his guitar.

_You say you gotta go and find yourself_

_You say that you're becoming someone else _

_Don't recognize the face in the mirror _

_Looking back at you_

_You say you're leaving _

_As you look away_

_I know there's really nothing left to say _

_Just know I'm here _

_Whenever you need me_

_I'll wait for you _

_So I'll let you go_

_I'll set you free _

_And when you see what you need to see_

_When you find you, come back to me_

_Take your time I won't go anywhere_

_Picture you with the wind in your hair_

_I'll keep your things right where you left them_

_I'll be here for you_

_Oh and I'll let you go_

_I'll set you free_

_And when you see what you need to see_

_When you find you, come back to me_

_And I hope you find everything that you need _

_I'll be right here waiting to see _

_When you find you, come back to me_

_I can't get close if you're not there_

_I can't get inside if there's no soul to bare_

_I can't fix you, I can't save you_

_It's something you have to do_

_So I'll let you go_

_I'll set you free_

_And when you see what you need to see _

_When you find you come back to me _

_And I hope you find everything that you need_

_I'll be right here waiting to see_

_When you find you _

_Come back to me _

_Come back to me_

He heaved a sigh and rolled over to bury his face in his pillow.

* * *

Puck went about the next day of school as usual; sleeping in class, moping around. Why did he feel so miserable without Rachel there? Why couldn't he just move on like he used to; no big deal. He'd never been in love before; that could have something to do with it. But why did he have to get over her, just because everyone said so? Sure, they said Rachel wouldn't come back, but Rachel would never leave him right? She loved him just as much as he loved her, so he was important to her right? He stuck his head inside his locker and kicked the bottom locker with his foot. Out of nowhere, he heard a familiar laugh. He turned around and he could've sworn he saw a girl that looked exactly like Rachel. He quickly shook the image out of his head. _You're probably just imagining things. _He skipped the rest of his school day and sat in his truck to clear his head. As he was driving home, he made sure to drive past Rachel's house. He did that everyday. Every day he saw the same image; a barren house with a for sale sign in the front yard. Today was a little different. He saw a light on in the kitchen and a shadow moving around. _It's probably just somebody working in the house. Don't get your hopes up. _So he sullenly drove home. He was in his room for about an hour before he heard his mother's voice.

"Noah, come down here for a minute," she yelled from the bottom of the stairs.

"Mom, I don't feel like talking." He rolled his eyes even though she couldn't see.

"There's someone here to see you," she called again.

"Tell them I'm not in the mood," he said obviously.

"I really think you should come down here." Clearly, she wasn't going to stop bothering him, so he decided to see what was so important.

"Who is it?" He suddenly stopped in his tracks when he saw who was at the door. Rachel jumped into Puck's arms, pulled herself up, and wrapped her legs around his waist. They intensely smashed their lips into each other's. They could've gone on like that forever, but Kathleen cleared her throat to make sure they knew she was standing there. To be honest, they had completely forgotten anyone else was there. They felt like they were the only ones in the room. Rachel immediately jumped onto the floor, but Puck held onto her hand. He pulled her off into a corner of the room.

"What are you doing here?" He asked; thrilled.

"I'm back," she said with a huge smile on her face.

"Why? Did something happen with Spring Awakening? Did they let you go?" He was asking so many questions so Rachel interrupted him.

"Everything was great. The show was going well and I was really enjoying it," she started out.

"But?"

"But, I couldn't be away from you any longer. Two months was tearing me apart. I missed the comfort of my home, of school, glee, you. As much as I love Broadway, I realized that I'm not ready to give up everything I love just yet. I have a duty to Glee and I'd feel pretty lousy if I just left you guys unprepared months before Regionals." He kept completely silent. He wasn't sure what to say. He was extremely happy that she was back, but he didn't want to be the reason she had left the opportunity of a lifetime.

"What'd they say?"

"They were pretty mad at first that I left them without a star, but they understood why I did it. Broadway's some pretty tough stuff, especially when you're torn away from everything you know. They realized that asking me to abruptly leave my life behind with a days notice was a little impossible, so they offered me a job during the summer. That way I'll have more time to prepare and I could plan it better."

"I'm really glad you're back Rachel." He smiled happily at her.

"You have to come with me this summer," she said randomly.

"Huh?"

"Yeah, I've already talked with my fathers and they think it's a great idea. They saw how miserable I was being away from you and they figured that you coming along would make my time in Chicago more enjoyable."

"Noah was pretty miserable without you too," Kathleen interjected. Puck jerked his head motioning for his mother to leave the room. Once she was gone, Puck went back to his conversation with Rachel.

"She's right. It sounds lame, but I kinda didn't know what to do without you around."

"That's not lame at all. I happen to think that's actually very sweet." She leaned her head into his chest as he wrapped his arms around her waist. There was that smell again; the smell of vanilla, the smell of Rachel. A familiar smell that could only mean one thing; Rachel was home.

"Next time you're planning on leaving me to become a Broadway star, make sure that I have at least a month's notice," he joked.

"I'll remember that." She laughed the laugh that Puck had sworn he heard earlier.

"You know what's crazy? I missed you so much that I thought I saw you at school earlier," he admitted.

"Oh yeah, where?"

"In the hallway before lunch."

"That was me," she stated plainly.

"It was?"

"Yeah, I went to transfer back to McKinley. I stopped by Glee rehearsal, but you weren't there, so I had to come and see you." He looked confused. "I missed that naïve cluelessness of yours. It's so cute." She put her hand below his chin and squeezed his cheeks together with her fingers like an aunt or grandmother would. He jokingly swatted her hand away from his face. He cupped both of his warm hands on the sides of her cool face.

"God, I missed you so much." He bent down to kiss her on the lips.

"I missed you too," she said before they shared another embrace.

* * *

Rachel and Puck spent a couple of hours together thinking about how good it was to have each other back. They laughed and flirted and joked just like they did two months ago. It was as if nothing ever changed; like Rachel was never gone for 8 whole weeks.

"I better get going. My dads went back to Chicago to finish getting all of our belongings and they wanted me to finish unpacking what we brought with us," she said getting up from Puck's bed.

"Do you want me to drive you? It's pretty dark outside."

"No no, I have to make some stops along the way anyway, but would you mind coming over later. I don't feel like staying alone."

"Of course I will." He kissed the top of her head as she backed away towards the door.

"I'll let you know what time you can come over. I'll text you by 9." And just like that she was out the door.

Rachel's first stop was Mercedes house. No surprise, that when Mercedes opened the door, Tina, Artie and Kurt were all sitting in her living room. They all ran up to Rachel and gave her a big hug. Rachel went inside to talk for a little while before heading to the drug store. She picked up a few things and went on her way. She noticed an awfully familiar man staring at her out of the corner of his eye, but she paid no attention and continued walking home. Every few steps or so she'd hear a rattle in the bushes or footsteps behind her, but every time she turned around, no one was there. _Maybe I should have had Puck drive me home. Naw, it's probably just your imagination Rachel. You freak out in the dark, just shake it off. _Even though she felt like it was just in her imagination, she sped up her pace. Once she got home, she hastily locked the door. She took a moment to catch her breath; the running she'd just did wore her out. A few minutes later, she heard a knock on her door. _It couldn't be Puck, its only 9:30. But maybe he wanted to come by a little early. _She speedily freshened up before opening the door again. But when she opened the door she didn't see her boyfriend, she saw Dave Karofsky.

"Just come back from a long night of partying Karofsky?" Rachel rolled her eyes in disgust.

"I'm surprised your boyfriend's not here." Rachel could tell he was drunk by the way he smelled and the way he was slurring his words and stumbling around on her porch.

"Yeah, well he'll be here in a little bit, so buh bye." She tried to close the door, but she found it smack her to the floor as it flung open again. Karofsky walked in as she was rubbing her bruised elbow.

"Aren't you gonna invite me in?" He slammed her door shut.

"Why would I do that? Last time I checked, you threw a slushie in my face. As a matter of fact, it was the last time I saw you," she said sarcastically.

"You obviously like that kind of thing. Puck used to throw slushies in your face all the time, and now you're fucking him." He walked closer to her and she scooted her body across her rug to get away. She reached a dead end when she smacked right into her television and vhs tapes fell all over the floor.

"You don't know the first thing about our relationship. Don't bring Noah into this, it has nothing to do with him!" She stood up and swung her arm to slap him, but he caught her wrist mid-swing. She tried to wriggle her wrist free, but it was no use. Trying to break free from Karofsky's grip was like trying to break steel bars with you bare hands; impossible. "Let me go!" She yelled. He just laughed at her. "Please let me go." She tried a nicer approach.

"Why?" He said smugly.

"I'll uh, I'll do whatever you want, just please," she cried softly.

A few minutes later all that could be heard was Rachel's barely there scream.

* * *

Puck waited and waited and waited for Rachel's text but it never came. She said she'd text him by 9 and it was now 11:00. That was very unusual of Rachel considering she was never late for anything, not even a school day. He waited for another half hour and then decided to drive over to her house. As he drove to her house in his truck, he couldn't help thinking about all the things that could've gone wrong. It was late and Rachel was walking outside alone. He was so stupid to let her be out there by herself at that time of night. He pulled up to her house and knocked on the door. Nobody answered him, but he saw that the door was cracked, so he walked inside. On the living room floor were the vhs tapes that had fallen when Rachel tried to get away from Karofsky. Puck just figured that Rachel was unpacking those. He thought it was a little weird that he didn't see any boxes and that the house was the exact same way it was when he was saying goodbye to Rachel 2 months ago, but he didn't pay attention to that; he just wanted to find Rachel. He searched the whole bottom floor in the house but Rachel wasn't there, so he went upstairs. He saw her standing with her back towards him facing the window in her bedroom. _She just lost track of time, he silently grinned to himself. _He snuck up behind her and put his hands over her eyes. As soon as he did that, she jumped.

"Don't touch me, don't touch me!" She shrieked. She flailed her arms around and walked over to the other side of the room.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry; did something happen?" He asked suspiciously. He walked over to her, but she pushed him away.

"Nothing." He knew better than that. She was being distant; cold towards him. He hadn't done anything wrong that he knew of.

"You're lying to me," he said knowingly, "I can tell something's wrong." She shuffled over to the corner of her room. She put her legs up and hugged her knees. She laid her head in her lap. Puck was hesitant to walk over to her at first, but he made his way over to where she was sitting and put his arm around her waist. This time, she didn't jump. She looked up at him with tears in her eyes. "What happened?" He asked again.

"Karofsky," she said through her tears.

"What did he do?" He said through gritted teeth. She laid her head back in her lap. He lifted her chin up with his hand. "What did he do?" He repeated.

"Nothing, he did nothing." She shook his arm off and paced around with her arms across her chest.

"What did he _do_ Rachel?" He said angrily.

"He um, he came in and I tried to get him to leave, but he wouldn't. So I tried to close the door on him, but he pushed me. When I got up he grabbed my wrist, and um, he held on tight. I couldn't break free!" Her voice was shaking uncontrollably.

"Rachel did he touch you?" She avoided his eyes and instead looked down at her feet. "Rach, look at me. Did he touch you?" She shook her head yes. "Did he hit you?" She shook her head yes again. He was afraid to ask the last question, but he had to figure out what went on. "Did he, did he rape you?" He said choking back the anger that started forming in his throat. One final nod from Rachel was all he needed.

"Rachel show me what he did to you." To make matters worse when Rachel lifted up the sleeves on her shirt, she revealed red finger marks around her wrist. She also had bruises all up and down her arms. One look at the state of Rachel's body made his body tremble with animosity.

"That's it, he's dead. I'm gonna kill him." He pounded his fist against the wall beside Rachel's head.

"No, please don't do anything! If he finds out someone knows," she said in a panic.

"You have to go to a doctor. What if something's wrong?"

"Just please don't tell anyone," she pleaded. She let the tears trickle down her face. Puck wrapped her in his arms. He decided to keep his cool for Rachel. She didn't need any drama or arguments right now.

"Come on, lay down over here." He guided her over to her bed. At first, she awkwardly sat there but after a while, she laid down and drew her knees up on her side. Yet again, she wrapped her arms around her legs. After a while, Rachel finally nodded off. Puck quietly got off the bed to sit in the chair. He rested his head in his hand and just stared at Rachel. He wondered what was going on in her mind. He should've just driven her home like he wanted to, she should have let him. This wouldn't have happened. Everyone would probably say he was always blaming himself for things that couldn't have been controlled. He might not have been able to control the car accident, but he could have stopped this. All of a sudden Rachel jumped up in screaming terror. Puck ran over to her side and tried calming her down.

"I had a terrible dream. I saw Karofsky and…" she didn't need to finish.

"It's alright."

"I thought you left me," she said breathlessly.

"I'm right here. I'm not gonna leave you okay?" He pushed her head against his chest and that's the way they spent the rest of the night; barely getting a wink of sleep.


	30. Hurt & Big Surprises

**A/N: Thanks again for all the fantastic reviews! I appreciate the support! I just wanted to say that the story is almost over. It's getting pretty long, but I wanted to know what you guys think. I'm thinking of doing a sort of sequel to this one where it's about Puck and Rachel's summer in Chicago (where she goes to be in the Spring Awakening Production). There will be lots of drama and it won't be an easy summer but let me know what you guys think about that.**

Rachel woke up the next morning exhausted from the night she'd just had. She looked over at her boyfriend who was sprawled across the chair groggily snoring. She was so appreciative of Puck. If it wasn't for him she would have been so terrified for the rest of the night; not that what happened to her didn't scare her and possibly scar her for the rest of her life. She glanced at the alarm clock on her bedside table and sprung off the bed seeing that the time was 9:00. She raced over to Puck's side and shook him fiercely.

"Wake up, wake up, we're late for school." She ran around the room trying to find an outfit. Puck took a minute to wake up and noticed Rachel flying around the room. "We're late for school, let's go!" She yanked at his arm, but he didn't budge. It reminded her of the way Karofsky wouldn't budge. She spaced out and started remembering the images of her nightmarish yesterday.

"Hey, are you alright?" Puck stood up, which startled her.

"Yeah we've just got to get to school," she said returning to her previous state.

"You know you don't have to go to school right? I'm sure they'll understand if you need a day off or so," he said gently.

"Why? I'm fine," she said pretending.

"Rach you don't have to pretend around me, okay? If you're scared or worried or whatever, talk to me." He walked over to give her a hug, but she pushed him away.

"Could you leave? I want to get dressed," she said ignoring everything he'd just said to her. He faltered at first before deciding to give her her space. Puck threw on the outfit he had brought over and waited for Rachel to come downstairs. She ran straight to the door and Puck had to run to catch up with her.

"We can take my truck," he suggested.

"I just want to be by myself," she stormed off.

"I don't want you being alone, not after last night," he called out to her. She just continued walking. When Rachel got to school, she saw a throng of teens laughing and smiling. It was as if nothing even happened; they didn't even know the hell she'd just gone through no less than 12 hours ago. She squirmed through the crowd; feeling eyes on her. It was like they sensed something; fear maybe? She kept her head down as she walked through the sea of people. She quickly glanced up and saw her worst nightmare; Karofsky. There he was sitting on the bike rack laughing with his friends as if he did nothing wrong. He didn't even care about the pain he caused her or the damage he did to her; both physical and emotional. She wanted to walk right up to him and cuss him out, and that was something Rachel never did. Seeing him pissed her off in every way possible and she wanted everyone to know what he'd done to her. She wanted him to pay. Then, he made eye contact with her. She darted her eyes toward the ground and ran inside the school as he averted his attention back to his friends. Once she got inside she stopped dead in her tracks. _Maybe this wasn't the best idea, she thought. _She turned around and smacked into Puck's arms. He held her tightly.

"You don't have to go in there. Don't force yourself to do something you're not ready for," he stroked the back of her head. She was silent. She suddenly froze up. She continued to keep her head down as she walked with her arms folded across her chest. Puck kept a firm grip on her; wrapping both of his arms around her, keeping her at his side. _Karofsky better hope he doesn't see me today. _He wanted him to pay for not only the embarrassment he's going to cause for Rachel, but for the emotional and physical scars he's left with her. He wanted him to feel the pain Rachel felt. He despised Karofsky; the only person he hated besides his dad. As Puck walked Rachel through the hallway he knew people were staring at them and talking about them, but he didn't care. All he was worried about was protecting Rachel and making sure she felt safe.

"Aww poor little Rachel," Santana teased jauntily, "What? Too upset that you had to leave Spring Awakening to come back to this crappy town. I would be too, especially if I had to come back to a cheating whore as a boyfriend." She giggled with the other cheerleaders around her. Rachel just looked up at her with tears in her eyes. Calling him a cheating whore didn't bother Puck half as bad as the way Santana was teasing Rachel when she didn't even know what she'd been through. He let go of Rachel and walked over to Santana.

"She was raped," he whispered angrily. He made sure Rachel didn't hear him because he was sure she didn't want anyone knowing. He didn't say anything else to her. He grabbed Rachel and walked away. Santana stared at them walking down the hall and actually felt bad for what she'd just said.

Once Puck walked Rachel to art class, he sat outside on the floor with his back against the wall. He didn't go to any of his classes that day because he wanted to make sure he was outside of Rachel's classes just in case she decided she couldn't handle the pressure anymore and wanted to leave. He explained to the teachers that Rachel was "going through a hard time" and they were actually understanding of the situation. They knew Rachel wasn't acting like herself, so whatever help they could give her, they would. As Puck leaned his head against the wall and closed his eyes he heard footsteps walking towards him. He opened his eyes and saw Brittany sliding down next to him. Brittany never said two words to Puck before in his life, why was she starting now?

"I heard about Rachel getting taped," said Brittany caringly.

"Raped, Brittany," he spoke.

"Right, I wanted to let Rachel know that I'm here for her. I'm sure she could use all the support she can get." He didn't say anything. "I'm here for you too, if you need anything." She walked away just as Santana came walking up. He turned his head the other way as she sat down next to him.

"I'm _so _sorry about what I said earlier. If I knew, I never would have said those things," she said guiltily.

"That's why you don't pass judgment before you know the situation."

"I know and again, I'm extremely sorry. I was just so mad at you for hurting me. You never looked at me the way you look at Rachel, you never cared about me as much as you care about Rachel and when I saw you guys walking down the hall together, it hurt. You think I'd be over it by now, but I'm not," she admitted honestly.

"Look, I realize that I hurt you and if I could take it back I would. I know how you feel now, I've experienced what I did to you and I'm sorry I put you through all that. But I was the one who hurt you, not Rachel. She didn't do a single thing to you and she shouldn't have to go through everything you and your wannabes put her through. Take it out on me, not her," he said firmly.

"I can't say that didn't hurt." Her eyes started to sting as a tear trickled down her cheek. "God Puck, I wanted to hurt you so bad so that you would feel the pain I had to go through. I thought the only way to do that was by going after Rachel. I knew if I insulted her, you'd feel hurt; mission accomplished. But it's not worth it anymore. I see the look on your face right now and I feel so terrible about what I did." She paused before talking again. "Do you know who did it?" she asked.

"Dave."

"Karofsky?" He shook his head. "Oh my God," Santana's eyes widened in shock, "I knew Karofsky was a jerk, but I never thought he'd do something like this. Has Rachel told anybody?"

"Just me but even I had a hard time getting it out of her. You can't tell anyone," he pleaded with Santana. He looked at her to see the reaction on her face.

"I promise. Would you tell her I'm sorry please? She needs to know that I'm sorry," she said standing up.

"Sure."

"Thanks Puck. See you around," she said walking off. A few minutes later Puck had another visitor. _Shouldn't they be in class? _

"Is everything okay with you and Rachel?" asked Finn taking Santana's place on the floor.

"We're fine."

"I'm surprised you're actually talking to me," said Finn.

"Why?" asked Puck.

"I thought you'd be mad about my feelings for Rachel."

"I don't blame you for falling in love with Rachel. She's an easy girl to fall for."

"Yeah she is." After a moment of silence, Finn spoke yet again. "Is Rachel okay? Everyone's noticing that she's acting weird today," he said concerned.

"She's just dealing with some stuff." Puck didn't want to tell Finn because he'd already said plenty to enough people. Rachel didn't want her business out there for everybody to know and he respected that.

"Like what?"

"I can't tell you."

"Why not?" asked a confused Finn.

"Rachel doesn't want anyone to know," he stated.

"It's bad, isn't it?" questioned Finn.

"Really bad," sighed Puck. Finn placed a complacent hand on Puck's shoulder.

"It's gonna be alright. Whatever happened will blow over," Finn tried to comfort Puck.

"Would you promise not to tell anyone if I told you what really happened?" Finn pretended to seal his lips. "Rachel was, Rachel was," he couldn't get it out. It was like the words were stuck in his mouth. He didn't want to say it out loud because that would mean it was real. If he kept it to himself, he could pretend like it didn't happen.

"Rachel was what?" asked Finn

"Raped," he said with hesitation.

"Who did it?" asked a protective Finn.

"Karofsky," he said silently. Finn had a look of wild anger in his eyes.

"Has she pressed charges, has she seen a doctor?"

"She doesn't want anyone finding out. She said that if people found out, Karofsky said he would do something," said a stressed Puck.

"What worse could he do? He already raped her," Finn said trying to remain calm.

"And beat her up," added Puck.

"That's not fair. Rachel's one of the best people I've ever known; she doesn't deserve all this crap she's had to go through. He has to pay for what he did to her."

"What are we supposed to do? We can't do anything," said Puck solemnly.

"He has to feel the pain that he made Rachel feel," said an upset Finn.

"I've been saying that all day. I promised Rachel I wouldn't do anything, but if I see him today, I can't promise I'll play nice," Puck admitted.

"Neither will I."

"I just feel so guilty."

"Why, you weren't the one that did that to Rachel, if anything she'll get through it because of you," Finn offered his support.

"I was the one that let her walk home alone in the dark."

"You didn't know Karofsky was gonna go crazy, and if you would have known you wouldn't have let her walk home alone. Puck you have got to stop blaming yourself for every bad thing that happens to Rachel. Life is unpredictable, we don't know what's going to happen from one day to the next, but we just have to deal." Finn walked away with a look in his eyes that Puck couldn't quite explain. It was a concerned and protective look, but sort of mischievous. Whatever Finn had in mind, Puck didn't want to know. As soon as Puck finally got comfortable, he saw run out of class and into the girls' bathroom. He got up and stood outside the door.

"Are you okay?" He didn't get an answer, but a few minutes later Rachel walked out of the bathroom.

"I wanna go home," she said walking towards the exit. While Rachel was in her first class of the day, Puck drove his truck to school. He just wanted to be prepared.

As Rachel and Puck walked through the parking lot, Puck noticed Karofsky standing by his car. A wave of emotion; particularly anger, came over him.

"Get in the car Rachel," he ordered. He helped her into his red truck before going over to the person Puck hated most right now. Puck didn't say a single word instead he forcefully punched Karofsky in the face.

"What the hell was that for? First Finn now you, what are you PMSing today or something," Karofsky asked as he tried to regain his balance.

"What do you mean by 'first Finn'?"

"Hudson just walked up and sucker punched me earlier.

"Good, you deserved it."

"What are you talking about Puckerman?" he asked dumbly.

"Don't pretend like you don't know. Rachel told me what happened and you better stay away from her!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said snidely. He knew exactly what Puck was talking about; he was just playing dumb.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about." Puck narrowed his eyes at Karofsky.

"Oh you're talking about how Rachel and I, yeah well sorry to tell you, but she liked it," he said in the smuggest way possible." That's when Puck had had enough. He grabbed Karofsky by his shirt and shoved him against his big black van.

"I'm not gonna say it again; stay away from Rachel! If you even look at her again; let alone touch her again I _will _make sure you get what you deserve."

"You wouldn't dare," Karofsky laughed. Puck shoved him harder against the car.

"You think I'm joking. Try me," he warned. Puck shoved him one last time before walking away.

"I could press charges you know, on you and Finn." Puck turned around and laughed at him.

"You're kidding right? You're _lucky _that's all I did to you. After what you did to Rachel, nobody is going to actually side with you. You must have a screw loose in that head of yours," Puck said the last part quietly as he walked back to his truck. He calmed down before he got in the car. He didn't want to cause any more drama for Rachel; she had enough to deal with. During the whole car ride, Puck tried talking to Rachel, but she was silent. She hadn't said more than 2 words to him the whole day. He expected her to be distant, but he had to know how she was feeling. She couldn't keep to herself; she had to talk to someone. He hoped that if he continued talking he'd get her to say something. Puck pulled into a parking spot in front of Rachel's house. He tried to get Rachel to talk again.

"Rachel I know this is a difficult time for you but you have to talk to me. Say something, anything, because it's not good to keep this all to yourself. How are you feeling?" After a few minutes, he finally got something out of her.

"I might be pregnant," she said before slamming the door of his truck and walking up her porch. Puck was completely taken off guard. He took a deep breath and leaned his head against the steering wheel of the car.


	31. Letters & Jackets

**A/N: I'm taking a really big risk here by putting something in the story that I'm sure not all of you will enjoy. But it's because I have a lot of ideas for the sequel to this story that relate to what I put in here. So don't be TOO hard on me(: **

As Puck nervously waited on the edge of Rachel's bed for the results a million different questions ran through his mind. Was Rachel actually pregnant? If she was, was the baby his or _Karofsky's_? He choked on the name just thinking about it. Would Rachel keep the baby or want to give it up for adoption or worse; abortion. Although Puck didn't approve of abortion, if that was Rachel's choice, he'd go along with it because he wanted to support her. He anxiously shook his leg up and down and ran his hands through his hair as he waited for Rachel to come out of the bathroom. A few minutes had passed before he noticed Rachel standing by the doorway. They didn't say anything to each other. Rachel shook her head and he understood what that meant; they were in big trouble. He would've had a baby with Quinn and now it's possible that he might be having a baby with Rachel. He tried to stand up but his head starting spinning like crazy so he sat back down for a minute. When he felt stable enough, he walked over to Rachel and took her into his arms. She rested her head on his shoulder and that's the way it was for quite a while. Once it sunk in and they realized what they were actually going through, they sat down on Rachel's bed.

"Do you think it's…?" He didn't want to ask because he didn't want to remind Rachel of everything she'd just gone through, but he had to know.

"Noah, when you and I had sex, we were careful. I was on birth control and you used a condom. When Karofsky," she couldn't manage to finish her sentence and he didn't want her to.

"I understand. What are we going to do?" When Puck said 'we' Rachel was surprised.

"We, but it's not,"

"I don't care. I love you and I'm always going to be here to support you."

"Thank you." She put her arms around his neck for another hug. Although this wasn't the best thing that could've happened, Puck was just happy that Rachel was finally talking to him. She had finally come out of the trance that she was in. "What am I gonna do? I can't tell my dads, they'll freak out. They'll probably think it's yours before I even have time to explain."

"If you're not ready to tell them what happened, I'm okay with you telling them that it's mine. I'll take whatever heat they throw at me," he said supportively.

"No, no I can't do that to you. Plus, if I did do that, they'd never let me see you again and I really need you right now. I'll tell them I just have to wait for a while. I'm not ready to let them know yet. I haven't even decided what I want to do." She snuggled up closer to Puck. They laid down and she rested her head on his chest.

"Well whenever you are ready to tell them I'll be here for you, no matter what happens." He brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it gently. After a moment of silence, Rachel broke it.

"I can hear your heartbeat," she said silently.

"It always beats that fast whenever I'm with you," he said while stroking a strip of her hair.

"You really love my hair don't you? I mean you're always playing with it," she joked. He was glad she finally had a smile on her face and a reason to laugh. He was so glad he had his Rachel back.

"Well it just always smells really good," he laughed.

"Oh yeah, like what?"

"Mmm, like vanilla. I can't explain it but every time I smell that scent it reminds me of our first date. That date was the moment that I knew you were more than just a fling. When I saw you walk down those stairs, I had the hardest time taking my eyes off of you. You looked so different, but still beautiful. At the end of the night, I knew I was in love with you."

"That just made me fall in love with you all over again." She reached up to touch her lips to his.

"When you left for those two months, I remembered the letter that you gave to me. Every night I would read that letter over and over and it gave me hope that you'd come back. Everyone was telling me how you wouldn't be coming back or you were happier in Chicago, and I started to believe them. But every time I'd read that letter I knew we weren't finished yet. I knew you couldn't just leave like that. I knew you wanted to be with me as much as I wanted to be with you. You know, the letter even smelled like you. That's why whenever I missed you I'd just sit there and hold it."

"That's what I did with your jacket. Every single night I'd fall asleep with your jacket on. It just reminded me of everything we had together and I just wasn't ready to give that up. We have something special Noah, I know it. It's unlike anything I've ever felt for anyone else before."

"Do you ever regret leaving Chicago? Don't you think you would've been happier there though? You wouldn't have had to go through all of the stuff you're dealing with now." He hoped that her answer was no, because if she did regret leaving, he'd feel pretty bad.

"I also wouldn't be with you right now. Besides, I still get a chance to live out my dreams, but I get to do it with you by my side this time." That was the answer he was looking for. They sat in comfortable silence for just a few minutes.

"You know, I saw what you did to Karofsky today," she said looking up at him. He tried to play it cool.

"Wh-what are you talking about?" He played dumb. She raised her eyebrows at him in a gesture that said "you know what I'm talking about." "I'm sorry I just, he deserved it."

"I know." Puck gave her a shocked look. "Although I don't agree with your methods, I appreciate what you did for me. It's a little weird that I'm thanking you for beating someone up for me, but you get the point." Finally, Rachel was rambling again.

"Glad to have you back," he smiled. Rachel closed her eyes just for a few minutes. When she opened her eyes, she found Puck kneeling on one knee on the floor.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"Will you go to prom with me tomorrow?"

"How am I gonna be ready in time for prom tomorrow? I need a dress and…" He puckered his lips in a pout.

"I'm just kidding. If I say yes will you get off the floor? My fathers would freak if they even saw you like that. Their daughters already having a child, I don't think they'd be too thrilled to think that she's getting married too." She pulled Puck off the floor and back onto the bed. When he got back onto the bed, Rachel playfully slapped his shoulder.

"What was that for Miss Berry?"

"You could've just asked me like any other guy would."

"Well Rachel, I'm not just any other guy. I'm your boyfriend." She slapped him again. "Okay, okay, I'm just joking." He threw his hands up in surrender. She lightly pushed him onto his back and nestled into his lap.

"So what made you want to go to prom? I've never pictured you as a prom type of guy."

"You, I know prom is this big deal to you and I just want something to make you smile. You've gone through a lot this past year and I figured that you should end the school year doing something that makes you happy."

"I love you more than you could ever know." _Maybe he's right. Maybe going to prom is just what I need. It'll help me take my mind off of everything and I get to spend a couple of hours just being with Noah. _ She puckered her lips and kissed him gently before falling into a quiet slumber.


	32. Today was a Fairytale

**A/N: Last chapter:'( Hopefully it's a satisfying ending for you all. But the sequel's first chapter should be up in a few days. Gotta work on it and fix everything up. Hope you enjoyed the story and cannot thank you ENOUGH for all the reviews you've given me. Hopefully you'll like the sequel just as much. Songs in this chapter 'Don't Wanna Miss a Thing' By Aerosmith & 'Today Was a Fairytale' By Taylor Swift. Let me know what you think, even if you hated it! Oh and also, if you want to see the outfits that I described for the characters, they're on my profile, just copy and paste them into your browser.  
**

Rachel had to say, she was a little excited about going to prom; okay she was really excited. _Maybe this could make things right for a little? Is that stupid? _She thought maybe having a night to take her mind off everything and have no worries would be a good thing. She needed a distraction. After all, now she knew how Quinn felt. She was having a baby by a guy who wasn't her boyfriend. Although it wasn't by choice, she related to Quinn. She never understood why Quinn would want to give her child up for adoption, but now she understood. She knew why Quinn would want to keep it a secret. She took her mind off of the pregnancy for a while to get ready for prom. Mercedes and Kurt helped her pick out a dress and they all got ready in Rachel's room. Kurt looked fabulous in his suit. He was about the only guy at prom who wasn't wearing a black tuxedo, (besides Artie, who opted for grey) so to say he stood out would be an understatement. Puck and Finn chose more traditional looks and went with the classic all black tux. Finn wore a white shirt while Puck wore a blue one. Matt and Mike each wore a black suit as well, but wore sneakers with theirs. Mercedes wore a dress similar to the dresses that the girls wore for their Sectionals performance. Santana and Brittany wore matching black dresses and matching pink and black shoes, and even had matching pink purses. Tina was the only girl not wearing a dress, but she still looked as amazing as the rest of them. She chose to wear a red skirt and black corset with her signature arm warmers and black studded converse. Tina also seemed to be the only one in the club who embraced the 'masquerade theme' and wore a purple masquerade mask. Everyone agreed she didn't need a dress to look stylish for prom. Rachel wore a grey and black dress with black pumps and a little black sweater. She was lucky because he baby bump wasn't showing just yet. Quinn wore a black and blue dress and opted for flats instead of heels. Her baby bump barely showed anymore. The whole club wanted to go together so they met up at Mercedes house to take pictures, then they'd go to prom together in the limo that they all pitched in for. Luckily everyone came with a date, so there was no drama. Rachel and Puck went together; of course. Mercedes and Kurt were stuck to each other like glue for the whole night. Finn and Quinn reconciled for a night to enjoy each other's company, but that didn't mean they were back together. Artie had finally made up with Tina and they were closer than ever. Matt went with Santana and Brittany went with Mike but all four of them hung close all night, it was hard to tell whose date was whose.

When they walked through the doors of the school gym, the "Masquerade Prom" theme was very apparent. The multi-colored decorations adorned almost every inch of the gym. It was almost unrecognizable. As soon as they all got there, they went their separate ways. Finn and Quinn sat down at a table, Matt, Brittany, Santana, and Mike went to hang out at the DJ booth, Mercedes and Kurt went around critiquing everyone's outfits, Artie and Tina got some punch and Puck and Rachel went out on the dance floor.

"Are you sure you wanna do this? I might embarrass you with my dance moves," Puck jaunted. She pulled him closer to her.

"I guess I'll take that chance," she winked. Puck dipped her like he saw in all the movies and she let out a slight giggle. Pretty soon they were joined by the rest of the club who danced along with them. The night was filled with laughs and smiles and not once did anyone have a reason to feel upset or stressed; whatever they were going through was put out of mind so they could enjoy their final night together before summer break. Everyone would be doing different things this summer, so they wanted to have one more night to be together. Quinn would be teaching a ballet class in Lima, Matt and Mike were going to be interning as assistant choreographers for a very elite dance class in New York. Santana and Brittany were attending cheer camp; something they did together ever since they were 12, it was actually where they first met. Mercedes summer plans consisted of working as a receptionist at her dad's dental offices. Kurt would be spending the summer as an intern at a new fashion magazine headquarters that just opened in Lima. Since Tina and Artie grew up together, their families were close. They would be going on vacation to Hawaii together for the whole summer and Puck would be spending the summer with Rachel in Chicago. Everyone was excited to start their summers, for some of them this summer would be the opportunity of a lifetime for them, for others it was just about fun. They all wondered how Finn would be spending his summer, but he kept his lips locked for some strange reason.

"Okay everyone listen up," said Jacob Ben-Israel from the stage. Nobody listened to him though, so the DJ had to help him out.

"Yo be quiet or I won't play anymore music." That shut everyone up.

"Thank you," Jacob said awkwardly. "I have the results for Prom King & Queen in my hand. Prom Queen is," he started as he opened the envelope, "Rachel Berry." Rachel stood completely stiff. She wasn't sure if she had just heard right; her? Prom Queen? Puck had to nudge her a little to get her to snap out of it.

"You wouldn't have anything to do with this would you?" she eyed Puck.

"Nope, promise."

"So you mean I actually won?" She said mouth agape.

"Yes, now go up there and claim your title." One more gentle push from Puck and she walked onstage. Once she was gone, he winked at the other members of Glee. After all that Rachel had been through, they knew she deserved a moment to shine, so they went around making sure that everyone voted for Rachel. Jacob put the tiara on Rachel's head and handed her some roses. She received lots of applause and people cheering loudly for her. She felt special; something that she wasn't able to feel for a long time. Jacob put his arm around her waist and she quickly removed it.

"And I'm Prom King," he said happily. Every single person in the room stared straight at Jacob with a look of disbelief. They all knew that wasn't the case.

"Jacob?" Rachel didn't even have to look at him for him to say the correct results.

"Fine, fine, clearly you all don't know how to elect a proper king. Prom King is Finn Hudson," he said like he was annoyed. Puck didn't even care that Finn was prom king; he didn't like that stuff anyway, he was just glad Rachel was beaming. She was glowing with joy and he felt so good that she felt good about herself. Rachel walked offstage and skipped back over to Puck's side.

"I know you had something to do with this, but I'm so happy, I don't care right now."

"That's all I want." He kissed her cheek and started to walk away.

"Where are you going?" she asked pulling him back.

"I have another surprise for you." He ran onstage and was handed a guitar. _What is he up to? She wondered. _"Hey everyone, this song is dedicated to Rachel Berry, who is the most amazing person I've ever known," he said into the microphone. Rachel blushed a little. It wasn't because she was embarrassed, but because Noah was too sweet. He started to play the guitar and she quickly realized the song; how could she not? It was her favorite song of all time, a song she one day hoped she'd dance to at her wedding.

_I could stay awake just to hear you breathing_

_Watch you smile while you are sleeping_

_Far away and dreaming_

_I could spend my life in this sweet surrender_

_I could stay lost in this moment forever_

_Well, every moment spent with you_

_Is a moment I treasure_

_I don't wanna close my eyes _

_I don't wanna fall asleep _

'_Cause I'd miss you, babe_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing_

'_Cause even when I dream of you_

_The sweetest dream will never do_

_I'd still miss you, babe_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing_

_Lying close to you_

_Feeling your heart beating_

_And I'm wondering what you're dreaming _

_Wondering if it's me you're seeing_

_Then I kiss your eyes and thank God we're together_

_And I just wanna stay with you_

_In this moment forever, forever and ever_

_I don't wanna close my eyes_

_I don't wanna fall asleep_

'_Cause I'd miss you, babe_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing_

'_Cause even when I dream of you_

_The sweetest dream will never do_

_I'd still miss you, babe_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing_

_I don't wanna miss one smile_

_I don't wanna miss one kiss_

_Well, I just wanna be with you_

_Right here with you, just like this_

_I just wanna hold you close_

_Feel your heart so close to mine_

_And stay here in this moment _

_For all the rest of time_

_Don't wanna close my eyes _

_Don't wanna fall asleep _

'_Cause I'd miss you, babe _

_And I don't wanna miss a thing_

'_Cause even when I dream of you_

_The sweetest dream will never do _

'_Cause I'd still miss you, babe_

_And I don't wanna miss a thing_

By the end of the song, Rachel was legitimately weeping of joy. Quinn was the first to walk over to Rachel and sweep her up in her arms. She was glad to see the girl who helped her get through everything finally happy. She'd gone through just as much as Quinn and this time, it was her turn to help. Soon, everyone else went over to Rachel.

"You guys all knew about this, didn't you?" she said wiping her eyes. They all just shook their heads. "Thank you guys so much, you have no idea how much this night has meant to me." She hugged them all before Puck came offstage to ask her what she thought. Before he had a chance, she flew at him and threw her arms around his neck.

"Thank you so much," she said pressing her lips against his, "you're the best!"

"I assume you liked it," he playfully poked her in the side.

"I loved it. I don't know what I did to deserve you, but I'm so glad that I have you. I feel like the luckiest girl in the world. He grabbed her waist and brought her closer.

"No babe, I'm lucky to have you. You've changed my life in ways that I honestly couldn't describe. I don't know what I'd do without you." He puckered his lips and they shared a passionate lip lock.

_Today was a fairytale _

_You were the prince_

_I used to be a damsel in distress_

_You took me by the hand and you picked me up at six_

_Today was a fairytale_

_Today was a fairytale _

_I wore a dress_

_You wore a dark grey t-shirt_

_You told me I was pretty when I looked like a mess_

_Today was a fairytale_

_Time slows down whenever you're around _

_But can you feel this magic in the air? _

_It must have been the way you kissed me_

_Fell in love when I saw you standing there_

_It must have been the way _

_Today was a fairytale _

_It must have been the way _

_Today was a fairytale_

_Today was a fairytale_

_You've got a smile that takes me to another planet_

_Every move you make everything you say is right_

_Today was a fairytale_

_Today was a fairytale_

_All that I can say is now it's getting so much clearer_

_Nothing made sense until the time I saw your face _

_Today was a fairytale_

_Time slows down whenever you're around _

_But can you feel this magic in the air?_

_It must have been the way you kissed me_

_Fell in love when I saw you standing there _

_It must have been the way _

_Today was a fairytale _

_It must have been the way _

_Today was a fairytale_

_Time slows down whenever you're around_

_I can feel my heart_

_It's beating in my chest_

_Did you feel it? _

_I can't put this down_

_But can you feel this magic in the air? _

_It must have been the way you kissed me_

_Fell in love when I saw you standing there_

_It must have been the way _

_Today was a fairytale_

Rachel locked her arms around Puck's neck as he held onto her waist. She rested her head on his shoulder as they swayed back and forth. She was surprised how reminiscent this song was of the night she just had. The last year of her life was not anywhere near close to a fairytale, but tonight was. She was able to let loose and have a good time. She didn't have to worry about the pregnancy or her rape, or anything else. All she had to focus on was Noah. He was the best thing that could've happened to her. If it wasn't for him, she wouldn't have gotten through most of the stuff she'd gone through. She closed her eyes and hummed the melody of the song that was playing in the background. _Today was a fairytale. It certainly was, and I have my prince charming. _

It was simple moments like being together and not even having to say a single word to each other to know that they were perfect for each other, that they belonged together; that made it all the worthwhile. All the pain that they had to go through, all the fights they fought, all the ups and downs and tests their relationship had been through didn't matter anymore because they were together and they loved each other unconditionally. That was all that mattered. Tomorrow Rachel and Puck would be leaving for a whole summer together. They were sure it wouldn't always be an easy summer, but they would be together and nothing could tear them apart, or at least they hoped.


End file.
